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Monday, 7/26/10 My Finished Hex On Shrug

2010-07-26T01:00:00.000-07:00

Do you remember from an earlier post, when I first received the Crochet Wear book, and I made the Hex On Shrug for my friend Stephanie? I loved making it and how easy it was to make the hexagons and to put them together. The whole thing took a couple of mornings. When I dropped the shrug off at my LYS Twist to display it in the windows for the month of March, I told the shop owner, Shelly, that I thought she should order the book. Since she is so nice and believes in me, she ordered the book, and the sweet thing about it was that she had just got in the same brand of yarn that the pattern called for. Of course, I couldn’t resist looking at the yarn and then falling in love with it and just had to get some of it for a Hex On Shrug for myself. Like many projects that I think I’ll start for myself, this one also fell to the wayside to make room for more important projects (like the design contest pieces and gifts).

Last Saturday, I had a few hours to try and relax, so I decided to pull my Hex On shrug in from the wayside, take it with me to Twist, and finish it. The funny thing about it was that I had all the hexagons already made and had started putting them together. In the next few hours while I was being inspired by some of my friends that hang out at the LYS, I finished sewing my hexes together and inspired some of them to purchase the Crochet Wear book. When I left Twist, all I had to do was edge the shrug and make a button closure, and I finished that up the next week. What was I waiting for, Christmas?

Anyway, I stopped by my LYS to show off my shrug, and Shelly was nice enough to take my picture while I was browsing her book section, and I think I found another book that I may just have to have. Shelly informed me that she only has two of the Crochet Wear books left after my inspirational visit on Saturday. I love it!!!!

You can order your very own copy of Crochet Wear right here on CrochetSoiree!

Wednesday, 7/21/10 July CAL Doily Prize

2010-07-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I was trying to choose a doily for the July prize, I found this really cute doily pattern.

I don’t know if it was the easiness of the pattern or the picture of all the different colors of doilies that made me want to make one in every color of thread that I have.

I made myself stop at 6, but I assure you that I could have made a dozen easily. Anyway, I hope whoever wins the July CAL challenge enjoys the doilies as much as I did making them.

Monday, 7/19/10 Lace Weight Shawl

2010-07-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

If you read my blog, you probably already know that I have made countless doilies, tablecloths, and one bedspread from crochet thread (size 10), but until now, I had never before crocheted anything with lace weight yarn.

Last weekend I was inspired by a friend of mine named Jordan. I met Jordan in my LYS several years ago and get inspiration from her and my other friends as well. But last weekend, Jordan was wearing a shawl that I couldn’t take my eyes off of. We all asked her about it, and she said that she had crocheted it out of lace weight yarn. Well, there were several of us who couldn’t resist buying some lace weight yarn right then and there.

And look what I finished—a lace weight shawl of my very own, and I know this will not be my last lace weight shawl. I wonder what sock weight yarn would look like in a shawl since I can’t stop buying it as well. Crochet Soiree has some really cool sock yarn for sale here—Kroy, Deborah Norville, Red Heart, Bernat, etc.

Tell me what kinds of things you have made with lace weight yarn.

Monday, 7/12/10 Megan's Tote Made by Joshua and Tamarfied by Me

2010-07-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

When Joshua saw the Total Crochet for the Home book…

…and the Multistripe Tote…

…he thought of his good friend Megan.

He came up with the color sequence quickly and crocheted the front and the back very fast. Then it came time to hide his tails. Well, that took a while, and he kind of got side tracked and made a few hats, and one day I told him that I thought the tote should be lined, so I set out to find some fabric in my stash. Of course, when I say I’m going to line something, I don’t have a clue how I’m going to make it. I just jump in with both feet and start in. I decided to put in lots of pockets, and I wanted them to be just the right size for the items Megan carries. So I found out the measurements of her wallet and cell phone, and then, I just added some more pockets for good measure.

The lining took up most of an afternoon to make, and then I stuffed it into the crocheted tote. Well once I did that, I decided I needed to add a closure so things didn’t fall out of the bag. So I made a flap with a snap and a decorative crocheted button. Then last but not least, I just happened to have a handle that was rescued from an old purse, and it wouldn’t be complete without a cover of crochet, so I crocheted over the handle and attached the handle to some fabric tabs. I love the design process and how things just keep building…

…until you have this. Ta Da!!!! I was very pleased with the final product, and it was fun pulling it all together for our Megan. Her favorite thing was the little pocket that I made especially for her Chapstick.

Friday, 7/09/10 My First Christmas in July Project Completed

2010-07-09T01:00:00.000-07:00

I’ve been eyeing this Dodge Ball Set crochet pattern for a long time. I was so excited that you use an empty plastic ice cream pail. Since I have a hard time throwing these away, I just happened to have one handy. This was a really fun project to make, and you’ll never guess what I stuffed my dodge balls with! I used some of my husband’s old t-shirts with a little bit of sweater remnant thrown in for good measure (I can’t seem to throw that away either). The combination of the sweater weight and t-shirt makes the dodge balls just the right weight to throw and hit someone without it hurting. I really like the basket and could see skeins of yarn stored in it, also. I might have to make another one and use it just for stash yarn.

Tell me which CAL project you started with.

Wednesday, 7/07/10 Gift for Co-worker's Grandbaby

2010-07-07T01:00:00.000-07:00

Since I work for a company that’s fairly small and family owned, it seems like we’re all family. So when one of my co-workers has a baby or if they’re first time grandparents, I try to crochet the baby something. Well, one of my co-workers is a first time grandpa, and I decided to make the baby a pair of booties and a hat, and here they are. I used a combination of DMC Senso and a variegated sock yarn that has aqua, pinks, and yellows in it. Of course, I added my special touches of a flower on top and a personalized label inside.

I couldn’t resist taking his picture as I handed him the gifts. Its fun seeing a country boy melt when he talks about his new little granddaughter named “Piper”. Now I’m off to finish the gifts for another co-worker who is having a boy in July and for another co-worker’s twin nephews who are being born soon.

Phew, what’s on your hooks?

Monday, 7/5/10 Another Idea for “Hats Off to Mother”

2010-07-05T01:00:00.000-07:00

Ok. Sometimes or more like all the time, I go a little crazy or overboard with an idea. With these little hats from the Hats Off To Mother Free Friday Pattern, I couldn’t stop making them, and the inspirations on what do with them wouldn’t stop either. Remember when I said you could use them as a pincushion? After I stuffed the rolled up felt into the crown of the hat, I decided to make a flat crocheted piece and stitch the two pieces together at the rim of the hat for more stability.

Well, I showed my sister what I had done, and she said that I should use something inside to keep the pins from coming out the bottom. So I decided to cut a plastic circle from a cottage cheese container lid, and then I poked holes in the circle with an awl.

I used the holes to help with stitching the plastic to the bottom of the hat. Then I sewed the flat crocheted piece together at the edges and sewed a pin back on the back just in case someone wants to wear it as a pin. You could even sew it to a piece of elastic the size of your wrist and use it for a wrist pincushion. The possibilities are endless.

Friday, 7/02/10 July Crochet Along: “Christmas in July”

2010-07-02T01:00:00.000-07:00

For the month of July, we decided to have a Christmas in July Celebration for all those crocheters who start their gift making early. We have chosen 10 temporarily-free patterns for the CAL: a couple of toys, some scarves, hats, a doily, several angels, some slippers, dishcloths, and baby items. I think you will find something for just about everyone on your list. These patterns will be available free for the month of July and will revert back to for-purchase downloads after July. In place of the once a week, Free Friday Patterns during the month of July, I will be showing you the progress I'm making with my Christmas gifts.

Here are the 10 patterns:

Dodge Ball Set=5
Bulky Ski Mask=2
Angel Ornaments=5
Starlight Doily=5
So-Simple Slippers=2
Pocket Scarves to Crochet or Knit=2
Helmet & Mitts=5
Winter White Bear=5
Quick Kitchen Helpers=2
Cluster Stitch Cloche=2

The rules for July are:
1. Make your gifts from the patterns we have chosen.
2. Use any weight or kind of yarn and hook.
3. Embellishments are welcome.
4. If the pattern has more than one item to make on it, you have to make all items. The only exception is the Pocket Scarf pattern—you only have to make either knit or crochet.

I’m sure by now you have noticed some numbers beside each pattern. The catch to winning this time is:

Each pattern is worth a certain number of points!

For instance:
Mary Ann makes 1 of each of the 10 Patterns = 35 points, therefore 35 chances to win!
Debbie makes 10 Cluster Stitch Cloche hats = 20 points, therefore 20 chances to win!

I have a special doily surprise for first place this time, second place wins a Mimi Crafters Handbag , and third place wins two great books from Leisure Arts: Dressing Up Baby and Fair Isle to Crochet.

Good luck, have fun, and have a wonderful 4th of July!

Wednesday, 6/30/10 Tooting My Own Horn

2010-06-30T01:00:00.000-07:00

Have you found it yet? On the Crochet Soiree toolbar, there’s a tab called Videos and More. At the very bottom of this tab is an item called Coming Soon. Here’s where Crochet Soiree gives you a sneak peek of some of the new books coming out. I was scrolling through and noticed that I’ll be ordering a lot of these books.

Much to my surprise, I also came upon the Crochet Prayer Shawls book coming in July and guess whose design is shown last?

Yes, that would be my design and pattern. I really can’t wait to order this book!

Tell me what you think.

Monday, 6/28/10 Celebrity Slouchy Beanies for the Family

2010-06-28T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I first saw the Celebrity Slouchy Beanies book here on CrochetSoiree and discovered that the designs were by Lisa Gentry, I couldn’t stand it; I had to have it.

Before I could place my order, I found the brand-new Soft Dreams and Sophisticated Baby & Toddlers. I’ve been making a lot of baby gifts lately and decided I needed a few more patterns to choose from. Plus, I don’t think you can have enough toddler patterns either.

Then, my eye caught a glimpse of this new book called Grannies Gone Wild. Oh my gosh, if you don’t already know by now, I’m a granny square lover, so I had to order it, too. Plus I don’t think you can have too many granny square patterns either. Ha! Ha!

Anyway, when my new books came, I could hardly wait to open them up and look at all the neat designs. Before I knew it, my son, Joshua, had the Celebrity Slouchy Beanies book and had started on the Lacy Beanie. He told me he was making it for his girlfriend, Riley.

Then, before I knew it, he had finished Riley’s beanie and had started another one, but this time he was making one of the guy’s beanies for himself—unless someone else comes along and wants it. I don’t know when I’ll get the book back to make my own versions of the beanies. Ha! Ha!

Here’s a cute picture of Joshua and Riley when she was trying on her hat.

If you want to join in on the June Crochet Along, you can have a chance to win both the knit and crochet version of Celebrity Slouchy Beanies for your own—or if you can’t wait, just order them here at CrochetSoiree like I did.

6/25/10 Free Pattern Friday: Dog Mat Crochet Pattern

2010-06-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

I decided to choose another temporarily free crochet pattern for this Free Friday. Since I had some yarn left over from the New Years Cap, and the fun fur was flying already, I decided to make this Dog Mat crochet pattern. The pattern was very easy to follow, and it went very fast. I used the rest of the Lion Brand Cotton Ease and Fun Fur that I had left over from the cap, and I love how the mat feels. It’s so soft.

Here’s my version. This mat would be suitable for any dog or cat, and if you don’t have a four-legged friend of your own, it would make the perfect gift for that special friend or relative in your life that has a pet.

Have fun making this mat and let me know what kind of yarn you use on yours. This design came from a Leisure Arts leaflet called Crochet Essentials. This publication invites crocheters to enjoy creativity, relaxation, and success—all at once—by crocheting these 19 essential designs with Lion Brand® Yarn. These projects are great for anyone to create, but are especially suitable for beginners.

Remember to download the pattern right away, since it’s free for only a short amount of time.

Wednesday, 6/23/10 June CAL Doily Prize

2010-06-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

Take a look at the June CAL Doily Prize!

I’m really getting a kick out of making all these doilies for the CALs because having a purpose and a deadline pushes me into actually making them. I have been looking at this particular doily for over a year now, and I thought it would be perfect for the June Crochet Along since it has flowers in it, and all my flowers are blooming now.

The cool thing about the patterns that I’ve been using is that they are made from simple charts and symbols. I really do like making doilies from charts. All the outside motifs are made first and separately. Then on the last row of the second motif, you join it to the first motif and so on and so on. Then you are left with an open place right in the middle for your center doily to fit. Then you make the center doily and attach it to the outside motifs while making your last row. It’s so cool how when you get done attaching the center doily, the whole thing is done because the edging is already done with the last row of your motifs and center doily. The June doily measures 25½" across.

This is the fourth doily that I’ve made with this big spool of thread, and it still looks like it I have enough for several more. I’ll keep you posted on that. Anyway, I hope the person who wins this doily loves it as much as I loved making it. Good Luck to everyone! The June CAL ends June 30, so get busy posting your red, white, and blue!

Monday, 6/21/10 Finished My Butterfly Doily

2010-06-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

I was finally able to get back to my butterfly doily. I had to put down this doily and finish something else many times, then go back to it again and again. The last time I put it down, I was already over half way done. It didn’t take long after hitting the halfway mark because the pattern repeats. I just placed stitch markers at each end of the row that I was to repeat. That way I didn’t need to carry the pattern book around with me. When I finished the filet work of the doily, I decided to add a single crochet edging all the way around. I’m glad that I took the time to do the edging because I think it gives it a more finished look.

I can’t believe I still have this much thread on this giant spool of thread. I’m going to keep track of how many doilies I can get from this one spool of thread. This is Number 3.

6/18/10 Free Pattern Friday: Daddy’s Baby Afghan Crochet Pattern (and a Diaper Bag Idea)

2010-06-18T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I saw this cute picture of a young man with a baby and the afghan (and with Father's Day coming up), I thought about the new daddys in my life and thought this afghan crochet pattern would be a cool Free Pattern Friday giveaway.

I have just the right colors of yarns in my stash: Bernat Softee Baby and Patons Bamboo Baby—which you can purchase right here on Crochet Soiree.

Then, I started thinking about the new daddys carrying diaper bags. I saw another really cute picture of a daddy and his baby. Daddy was carrying a cloth diaper bag with a long strap that went across his chest with the bag hanging in the back. I thought hmmmm… I wonder if I could find a crocheted bag pattern that I could crochet into a more masculine looking bag for a daddy to carry. I didn’t have to look far.

I found this pattern called Shoulder Sack Purse that you can purchase for just $2.99 on Crochet Soiree. I purchased it and downloaded it right away. I was anxious to Tamarify this purse into a diaper bag that a daddy who had a baby girl wouldn’t mind carrying.

So here’s my version of the Shoulder Sack Purse made with Moda Dea Tweedle Dee, Bernat Softee Chunky, and Patons Shetland Chunky. I love the way the bag turned out, and it was so fast and easy. If you know me, you know I’m not quite finished with this as I think it needs to be lined with many pockets for all those special things that babies need.

Of course, it was so fast and easy I had to use some more of my stash of cotton/acrylic blend yarns and the colors that I love and make one for myself, too. Now, I have to get my fabric stash out and choose a fabric for the lining for this bag.

Anyway, I want to wish all the daddys in the world a Happy Fathers Day on Sunday and a very special Happy Fathers Day to my Daddy!

Monday, 6/14/10 I Finished My Pumpkin Pillow

2010-06-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

I told you that I would keep you posted on my pillow ideas from the Free Friday Pattern Chunky Pillows, so here it is.

Since I could only find 12" x 12" pillow forms at the craft store before they closed on Saturday, I had to think of something. I used a sweater that my daughter purchased at the thrift store that had the same colors as my gold cotton crochet yarn that I made the base of the pumpkin pillow side A from. With the cotton yarn that I used, my pillow front ended up being 9" x 9", so that was another problem I had to solve.

I decided to add a few rows of double crochet around the entire square and then make a little scallop edge for the last row. I found just the right color warm rose from my Royale Fashion Crochet stash, and I think it matches the sweater stripes perfectly. Then, I sewed up the sweater to cover the pillow form, before stuffing the pillow form into the sweater, I hand sewed the crocheted pumpkin pillow piece onto the middle of the front of my pillow.

Then, I found these three little buttons from my button box and sewed some fabric loops on the other side and stuffed the pillow form in and buttoned it closed. I still have to add some snaps between the buttons so the inside of the pillow form doesn’t show. I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out. I’d like to hear how you plan on making your pillows.

6/11/10 Free Pattern Friday: New Years Cap Crochet Pattern

2010-06-11T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I decided on this crochet pattern for this Free Pattern Friday, I thought hmm…I’m going to need to buy some of that fun fur. I had tried to crochet with it several years ago and didn’t have much luck, so I had given all of it to my daughter to make scarves out of.

Well, when I went to my local craft store, I found this really pretty color of fun fur and then found these two colors of one of my favorite yarns—Lion Brand Cotton Ease. I love that the Cotton Ease is cotton and acrylic, and it has some stretch to it, and it happened to match the fun fur just perfectly. You can purchase Cotton Ease right here at Crochet Soiree, and they have some really pretty colors. They also have novelty yarns that would work really well for this cap.

I think the cap turned out cute, and I think I know the only person that could pull it off is a friend of mine named Mimi from my LYS Twist. I hope you have as much fun making this cap as I did. Remember that this is a temporary pattern that will only be available for two weeks! Download it now!

And if you like great hats like this one, you need to check out the book it came from—iCrochet: Adventurous Hats & Bags by a really neat designer—Mary Estok Nolfi. It includes 11 crochet designs: a Harlequin Romance Hat (a bold pillbox shown 4 ways) and Bag; a Russian Cap and Document Bag; an Asian Influence Hat and Bag; our free New Year Cap, plus a coordinating Hat and Bag; and a Kente Colors Cap and Bag.

Wednesday, 6/09/10 Joshua Has Crocheted 4 Hats!

2010-06-09T01:00:00.000-07:00

When Joshua completed his afghan, he already had some yarn lined up to be a hat. Little did he know that hats crochet up really fast, and he couldn’t just stop at one hat…

…so he continued to finish a second hat and couldn’t stop at two hats.

He made a third hat and decided to make it for his friend Rian and even learned how to decrease from the I Can’t Believe I’m Crocheting book. I found this hat completed the next morning and took this picture. He completed three hats in a day!

Just a couple of days ago Joshua decided to make his drama teacher a crocheted hat, so he picked a pattern that was made from single crochets in the back loop, (back and forth not around). Then you weave in a piece of yarn at the top to draw it up and then make a seam down the back. I think it turned out really nice, and I hear that it fit Mr. Lundin perfectly, and he loved it.

I hope that once Joshua gets done with all the Senior and year end things, he will have more time to crochet. There’s no telling what he plans on making next.

Monday, 6/7/10 Marking Your Crocheted Items

2010-06-07T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I was trying my hand at quilting, my sister told me that I needed to make sure to always mark my quilts with my name, date, and who I made the quilt for. That made me think about my crocheted pieces and how I should be marking them. I decided I would start adding a tag to anything that I crocheted. I knew that doilies, lace, or openweave things would be hard to mark, but I thought I had better make a tag with fabric and a permanent type marker for everything that I give away, with the date, name of recipient, and my name. Then, I would sew it in the seam of garments or the wrong side of other items. I’ve been pretty good at doing this, but…

It looks like I was in too big of a hurry to include the date on this tag and my husband just delivered the crocheted blankets to our grandsons Eyan and Alex last weekend. Oh well, maybe I can make sure that I take my permanent marker with me the next time we go and visit them and add the date.

I know you can order labels made and have them personalized with your name on them, but wouldn’t it be neat if someone could make them to have blanks to write in the date of completion and the recipient’s name? Tell me how you mark your crocheted items—or do you?

6/4/10 Red, White & Blue June Crochet Along

2010-06-04T01:00:00.000-07:00

In place of this week’s Free Pattern Friday, I thought we could kick off a crochet-a-long for the month of June. This month, I decided that it might be fun to make some red, white, and blue things and be ready to decorate for the 4th of July. I’ve picked out four free patterns that would work well for a red, white, and blue-themed crochet-a-long. They are Ice Tea Jackets, Red Hot Dishtowels, Lacy Coasters, and Hot Pad Roundup.

With these patterns, you have a variety of different items to choose from, and if you haven’t yet tried to make a doily, Lacy Coasters are a good way to find out if you like making doilies because they’re fast and easy to make.

The Ice Tea Jackets are fun to make and aren’t hard to make either.

The Red Hot Dishtowels are fun, too, and the great thing about the trim is you don’t just have to put it on a towel; you could trim a pillow or the edge of a sweater.

Of course, Hot Pad Roundup is one of my favorite things to make, and they are so quick and easy, plus they are fun to have on hand when you want that special gift for someone, too.

The only rules for this crochet-a-long are that you will have to make at least one item from any of these free patterns, and it has to be red, white, or blue, and you may use any kind of yarn or thread. I have made another doily for one of the prizes, and Crochet Soiree has some goodies to give away: a Boye CrochetMaster Hook Set and copies of both the knit and crochet versions of the new Celebrity Slouchy Beanies books. It will be another random drawing. Good luck to you all. The June CAL will end on June 30.

Wednesday, 6/2/10 Design Contest 2010 Pieces Sent Off

2010-06-02T01:00:00.000-07:00

Well, it’s that time of the year to send my design contest piece off to be in the Knit & Crochet show in New Hampshire. Since the show is a little earlier this year, the deadline to have your entries sent in is June 15, 2010. Oh my gosh, I still have to fill out the form, write the check, and pack it ever so carefully and neatly into a box and hope that it gets there in one piece. I hope all of you who are entering have already sent your items in. I’ve got to run now, I’ll be back real soon.

Monday, 5/31/10 Memorial Day

2010-05-31T01:00:00.000-07:00

As Memorial Day was approaching and the 4th of July coming up, I wondered if I could find something to crochet in red, white, and blue. Guess what I found right here on Crochet Soiree—The All American Afghan! I just had to have this pattern. It’s super easy; I just paid for it, and then the pattern was downloadable (is this even a word?).

I really like the look of Americana and am making mine out of Red Heart Eco-Cotton Blend, Vanilla, Currant, and Denim. I love this yarn, and for me, my wooden hook worked the best to help the yarn slide through the stitches. The yarn has the softness and the drape of an old well worn t-shirt—the one that you can’t throw away because it’s just too soft and comfortable. (I know you know what I’m talking about.) I love the pattern, and I think it’s because it reminds me of the granny square stitch except it’s in stripes. Then, the star motif is a hexagon, and most of you know how I feel about hexagons. (Remember when I couldn’t stop making the hexagon baby sweater?) So wish me luck, I only have 75 more red and white stripes, 44 hexagons, and 6 half hexagon motifs to go. Ha! Ha!

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Memorial Day.

5/28/10 Free Pattern Friday: Baby Cardigan and Hat Crochet Pattern

2010-05-28T01:00:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh, look at these really cute baby cardigan and hat crochet patterns that I’ve chosen to be free for a limited time. I had some Patons Grace left in my stash that I’m making mine out of. I know it will make it smaller, but I’ll just have to adjust by using the larger pattern size and a larger hook. The fun thing about making baby things is that you already have them made up ready to pull it out for a baby shower or give as a charity item.

Of course, I had to Tamarafy the hat from this pattern, and I added some chains made from two strands of yarn in each corner of the top of the hat.

The “Baby Cardigan and Hat” patterns are from a book called Crochet Essentials that features Lion Brand Yarn and is published by Leisure Arts. The book has 19 beginner patterns, and I really like the easy factor in all of the designs.

I’m looking forward to trying some of the other patterns in the book.

Be sure to download these patterns now because they will be gone in two weeks!

Wednesday, 5/26/10 May Crochet-A-Long Prize Doily

2010-05-26T01:00:00.000-07:00

I chose this doily to crochet as a prize for the May Crochet-A-Long. I love the way the middle looks like a star and the way it spirals out into a pinwheel. I hope the person that wins it loves it as much as I loved making it.

The doily measure 19" in diameter, and this is the second doily made from this giant spool of thread. I can’t wait to see how many more I can get from this same spool of thread.

The May CAL will be ending soon! Be sure and post your Bean Bag Kitties and Berry Cute Coasters in the Challenge Section by May 31 for your chance to be entered in the drawing to win my doily or some other great hand-crocheted prizes.

Monday, 5/24/10 A Gift for Doug’s Babies

2010-05-24T01:00:00.000-07:00

As soon as I read the Leisure Arts Boutique Blog and found out that our own Crochet Soiree Website Guru Doug and was expecting twin girls, I was so excited to get started on a little gift for his family. When I found this little ceramic gift bag vase at the thrift store a month or two ago, I didn’t know what I was going to do with it. I knew I wanted to make some washcloths or dishcloths and put them in it, but now it had a purpose. I went to town making the two pairs of booties and decided to make one pair a pale pink and the other pair a little darker pink. I used DMC Senso, and I think they turned out really cute.

Then, I made two baby washcloths out of Patons Grace yarn and used two of the patterns for the Vintage Potholders from my Total Crochet for the Home book. Of course, I only used one thickness and no loops. Then I made a bigger washcloth more open weave out of some nice cotton yarn that I had in my stash from Twist the yarn shop for the new Mama to have for herself. Sorry Doug, I didn’t end making you anything, but there’s always next time. Anyway, I think you will have fun using the washcloths during bath time and watching those little booties kicking on those beautiful little baby girls. Congratulations and Good Luck!

5/21/10 Free Pattern Friday: Bride’s Sachet Hanger Crochet Pattern

2010-05-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

Look at this lovely, traditional, Bride Sachet Hanger. I thought it would make an ideal free crochet pattern for this week since wedding season is rapidly approaching, but since I don’t have any weddings to worry about right now…

…here’s the “Tamarafied” version of the Bride’s Sachet Hanger. I probably went a little overboard with the buttons, but they were calling my name just sitting there in that little plastic jewelry bag (another treasure hunt find). Most of the buttons don’t even match each other, but I do love seeing the colors dangling there on the crocheted ruffle. I was so excited about how it turned out that I decided to show my son.

This was the look on his face as he said, “What’s the purpose?” That wasn’t the reaction that I wanted, but what did I expect out of an 18-year-old young man? So when my husband came in the room, I showed him the hanger.

This was his reaction, but he was smart, he didn’t say anything! Ha! Ha! I’m not sure what kind of reaction I wanted from him, but he loves me and knows better than to say anything negative.

Anyway, I decided to take my hanger and a few WIPs down to the yarn shop and hang out with people that “get me”. I showed the hanger to a few people, and I met a few new people and really enjoyed talking with them. One lady named Dorothy and I started visiting about how to crochet with thread. I decided to show her my hanger, and she looked at it and said, “Does it have a purpose?” I looked at her and asked her, “Do you always have to have a purpose when you make something?” “Yes,” she answered. I thought a moment and said, “You know, I’m the same way most of the time. What would you use the hanger for?” She looked at it a few more minutes, and she said, “I think you could hang earrings off of it.” I was so excited about the idea and told her that I had been looking for an earring stand or holder for quite some time and never found just the right thing that wouldn’t take up too much room on my counter of my bathroom.

Now, I don’t even have to clutter up my counter. My earring hanger can just hang anywhere I want it to. I really flip-flopped this pattern around and thanks to Dorothy (my new friend), I have a very unique earring hanger.

Wednesday, 5/19/10 Crocheted Graduation Gifts

2010-05-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

I just had to share with you an idea that I had for giving some of Joshua’s friends as graduation gifts. A lot of Joshua’s friends know that I crochet (duh?). Anyway, they see me making things, or I have shown them what I’m making or have made, and one of their favorite things is amigurumi animals.

Amy Gaines’ Cute Little Animals book is a great source for crocheted amigurumi. I made my little animals from some Patons Grace yarn, and they turned out really small, but I love them, and you know cute small is. I decided to give five of his closest friends one each. I thought they looked so pretty here in their colorful bags.

I remember when I graduated from high school, one of my favorite graduation gifts was from one of my mentors. Her name was Mrs. Fawbush, and she helped me with crochet directions on doilies when I first started making them. She gave me a knitted shawl for my graduation gift, and I cherished it. I hope these girls like their little graduation gifts as much I loved mine.

Does anyone else out there make crocheted graduation gifts? If so tell me what you’ve made.

Monday, 5/17/10 Another Day with Jackie

2010-05-17T01:00:00.001-07:00

My sister called me on Saturday and said she needed my input on some projects she was working on. Since she had gotten most of her new fabric this week, she wanted me to also see them. This is one of many stacks of fabrics all over her basement—63 prints all together. I ended up helping her with choosing the fabrics for a couple of the quilts she was going to sew up and also helped her iron the fabrics.

I was really looking forward to seeing the faux crochet granny square fabric that Benartex made from my granny square afghan. Now, I need to pull out my Aunt Lydia’s crochet thread to see which ones look the best with the fabrics because, of course, she wants two receiving blankets edged with crochet for the Spring International Quilt Show this month. We had a great day, and I was exhausted when I got home just thinking about all the work that she still has left to do before she leaves.

Tell me about some of the fun things you do on Saturday.

5/14/10 Free Pattern Friday: Rococo Scarflette Crochet Pattern

2010-05-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

Here’s another really cool temporarily free design for our Free Friday crochet pattern this time. This special scarf pattern will be a free downloadable pattern for a limited time of two weeks, so download it now.

The pattern calls for chunky yarn, but you know me, I had to do something different. I used…

…two strands of Bernat Softee Baby yarn for my scarf, and then dropped one of the colors on each end to make the ruffles. I think some cotton yarn would really look good, too, and a lighter scarf is always nice to have around for those cool spring nights.

Of course, I had to put my own spin on the closure, so I thought about poking-a-hole-in some “Exclusively You” faux leather and making a flower out of it. I used one of my plastic lids and traced around it to make my circle; then, I just placed some dots evenly around the circle…

…and punched holes in it.

Then, I crocheted around the circle.

I think my pin will be cool on the scarf and on other jackets or purses.

Remember to tell all your friends that this pattern is only available for a short time! I hope you have as much fun making the scarf as I did. This free scarf pattern is from a book called iCrochet: Museum Quality Hats-Scarves-Purses by Francine Toukou, so if you like this scarf, you might want to check out the book for some other really cool designs. Thank you, Francine, for allowing us to use your Rococo Scarflette pattern for our Free Pattern Friday.

Wednesday, 5/12/10 Another Repurposed Sweater

2010-05-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

I can’t help myself; I have a problem with picking up sweaters like this one at the thrift store. I either like the color or I might just like the buttons. I bring sweaters home with me, and I launder them, and if they make it out of the washing machine in one piece, they hang around for a while until I get an idea for what to do with them. My ideas don’t always come right away and may even take a few days or months or years. My ideas may not come in the form of trims that I’ve seen, like the one for this sweater.

I saw a pattern for a baby afghan that had granny squares turned on point with zigzags running on the top and bottom of them. I found the pattern in a vintage 80’s pattern book by Jean Leinhauser and Rita Weis, and I thought of adding it to the sweater that had been hanging around for a few months. After I sewed the squares together and added the zigzag at the top, I decided to add my own design of stripey goodness for the bottom edge. Then, since I wasn’t quite finished, I decided instead of crocheting the edging onto the sweater, I thought it might look neat to button it onto the edging. I looked for 15 buttons of the same color in my button box and came up empty handed, so I found some buttons that were around the same size, and I crocheted around all of them.

I showed my new repurposed sweater to my friend Steph, and she was kind enough to try it on for me and model for the picture. I like the way it turned out, but I don’t think I’m quite done with it yet. I still think it needs to have one row of edging around the fronts and around the neck, just to tie it all together.

Monday, 5/10/10 Another One Hooked

2010-05-10T01:00:00.000-07:00

I remember meeting Ms. Jackie at my LYS about 3 years ago. She was always interested in what I was crocheting, and I was always curious about what she was knitting. She would always say that she was going to really learn to crochet one of these days. Ms. Jackie is an amazing knitter, and she can even knit while she is looking at you and talking. I’m still amazed at what knitters can make.

Anyway, last Saturday, I walked into Twist, and I was welcomed by the knitters table and, as always, I stopped to chat and see what everyone was working on. To my amazement, Ms. Jackie was sitting with a Crochet Today magazine and some nice little piles of crocheted granny squares. She looked up at me and said, “I’m crocheting and have finished a hexagon table cover.” I sighed and said, "Do you like to crochet?" Ms. Jackie said, “Yes” and that she was having so much fun crocheting. This made me smile, and I told her and the knitters, “Yes! I’ve hooked another one.” Ha! Ha!

Tell me about some of the people you have hooked. (And, oh, if you think you might be hooked on making crocheted granny squares, you need to check out this book: Great Grannies! The seven scrap afghan patterns it offers prove that grannies don’t have to be square!)

5/7/10 Free Pattern Friday: Hats off to Mother Crochet Pattern

2010-05-07T01:00:00.000-07:00

When I first saw the free crochet pattern for these little hats, I thought they were really cute. I have to admit I didn’t know if I would like making them, but as I was making the first one, I thought what a good way they were to use up the small amounts of thread that I have left from other projects.

I’m also in love with making these little hats. I can’t seem to stop; I want to make one in every color of thread that I have.

Here’s what I’ve made so far—12 of them.

Then, as I was making them, the wheels started turning. What else could I put in them besides potpourri? Oh, I found a strip of felt that I had used to make a tongue for the crocheted dog “Drama Dog”. I just rolled it up like a tape measure and sewed it together and stuffed it into the crown of the hat and…

…voila, it’s a tiny pincushion for those little appliqué pins.

Next up, I want to use some starch on some and give them a set of flowers and a pin back and make a lapel pin out them.

These are just a few things you can use these little hats for. I think they would make really cute Mother’s Day gifts. My hats are off to all the mothers out there and hope all of you have a Happy Mother’s Day.

Wednesday, 5/5/10 May Crochet Along

2010-05-05T06:54:00.000-07:00

Well everyone it’s May and everything is blooming here in Kansas and I’m sure things are blooming where you are too. People have been talking here at Crochet Soiree about another Crochet Along, so we’ve decided to do another one. This time we’ll be using 2 patterns that are in the free patterns.

I loved this Berry Cute Coaster pattern and couldn’t stop making them. I used some of the Patons Grace crochet yarn and it made them larger and just big enough to use as trivets for hot things to sit on my table. The fun thing about these coasters is that as you crochet the pattern, it automatically makes it 2 sided and then just comes together at the bottom without even sewing (except hiding the tails). You’ll see when you make them how fun they are and how addictive they can be. I had to make them in all different colors and they are so bright and cheery and remind me of the strawberry patch where we used to pick our strawberries when we were kids.

The other pattern that I chose is the Bean Bag Kitty. I know I’m not eligible but I’d like to try and make mine out of all different colors of yarn and make my Kitten striped.

The rules are simple this time:

Make your projects off of either or both patterns and use any kind of yarn you want to, embellish, or change it up however you want for either pattern. The crochet along will end on May 31, 2010.

There will be a drawing again and the prizes are:

First Place, Doily made by Me (Tamara Gonzales)
Second and Third Place will be crocheted items made by 2 Crochet Soiree members (ssshhh! Don’t tell them that I told you but they’re Molly and BarbM) Ha Ha!

Monday, 5/3/10 Jennifer’s Crochet Tulip Afghan

2010-05-03T01:00:00.001-07:00

My daughter Jennifer has been busy crocheting, too, and I am just as proud of her as I am about my son crocheting. After she made this afghan for one of my coworkers…

…she came over to my house for dinner the other night, and she pulled this out of her bag.

Gosh, it’s so pretty and springy looking. She’s using Bernat “Baby Softee” yarn and look at the pretty tulip design it makes.

Jennifer’s so talented and does such a good job and makes it look so easy. I asked where she got the pattern, and she said “Mommy, it’s a Leisure Arts publication called, A Year of Baby Afghans, Book 4, and you gave it to me.” Man, I’m a good Mom, aren’t I? Ha! Ha!

4/30/10 Free Pattern Friday: Ribbon Scarf Crochet Pattern

2010-04-30T01:00:00.001-07:00

Surprise! You’ve got a guest blogger today. I’m Lisa Gentry. Some of you may already be familiar with my crochet designs (The Crochet Closet), and some of you may know me from my “Leisurely Lisa Forum” here on CrochetSoiree.com. Tamara was nice enough to invite me to share my temporarily free Ribbon Scarf crochet pattern with all of you on this Free Pattern Friday.

This scarf design comes from my book, Teach Yourself Crochet Ribbon Accents, and I’m hoping that once you try my new ribbon crochet technique, you'll be as excited about it as I am. I'm really having a lot of fun making entire projects out of beautiful ribbon yarn and with adding ribbon to my other crochet designs.

This whole technique came about because I had tons of ribbon on hand, and I was just imaging what could be done with all that ribbon when I realized you could crochet it directly onto a project. What a discovery! When I introduced the idea to the women who take my crochet classes, they were so excited about the new projects they were able to finish. It was wonderful to hear them say, “I can do that!” And I bet you can do it, too!

Give ribbon crochet a try on me for free with my Ribbon Scarf pattern! This pattern will only be available for the next two weeks, so download it now! If you like the technique, check out my book—Teach Yourself Crochet Ribbon Accents, for more cool designs like a necklace, hat, pillow, purse, blanket, shawl, bolero, shell, wrap sweater, and a child’s dress.

Wednesday, 4/28/10 Design Contest Piece for Knit and Crochet Show 2010

2010-04-28T01:00:00.001-07:00

I am close to being finished with my design contest piece for the July Knit and Crochet Show in Manchester, New Hampshire. I wanted to share with you my method of madness. I had purchased some skeins of Deborah Norville’s sock yarn “Paprika” and was thinking about making another pair of crocheted socks. All of a sudden, I got to thinking about the design contest and the Spring International Quilt Market that my sister Jackie is going to in a few months (without me) and how one of the designs in her new line of fabric looks like my granny square throw that I made for her. I thought about what would it look like if I made a giant granny square with the sock yarn…Then I thought about the halter tops that I made when I was 15 years old and in high school.

It was a halter top made from a man’s big red handkerchief. I turned it on point and tied it in the back and then folded over the top flap and sewed it down and made a little pocket to thread a shoelace through, and I tied the shoelace at the back of my neck. (Yes, believe it or not that was me at 15 years of age.) That was my thought process for my design contest piece, and I hope my sister likes wearing it as much as I liked designing it.

Is anyone else entering something in the Design Contest?

Monday, 4/26/10 Finishing Touches to Steph’s Hex On Shrug

2010-04-26T01:00:00.001-07:00

Remember that shrug from the CrochetWear book that I was talking about making for my friend Steph? Well, I got it made, but when it came to picking out buttons for the shrug, I couldn’t find just the right look I was thinking about, so I picked out the size of buttons from my button box and decided to crochet around them.

I settled on these three colors of crochet thread.

I think Steph looks really good in her shrug…

…and it fits like it was made especially for her. Ha! Ha!

Friday, 4/23/2010 Happy Birthday Crochet Soiree!!!

2010-04-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

I was looking back at the year, and found that my first Tamara’s Take post was on April 23, 2009. We’re a year old today! I thought this little crocheted cake was appropriate for the celebration, and there are no calories in it. Ha! Ha!

The inspiration for my little cake was this round cake I found in a magazine a couple of years ago. You probably know by now that I have a thing for granny squares. I decided to make my cake in the shape of a square. (If you don’t have a favorite granny square pattern, check out the book 99 Granny Squares for inspiration.) When I had the size of granny square top that I wanted, I stopped increasing on the corners, and the sides started forming. I made it the height that I wanted it and made a chocolate brown fabric cover to cover the piece of foam to stuff it with. Then I made another granny square for the bottom and crocheted the sides and the bottom together as I stuffed the foam square inside the cake.

Of course, no cake would be complete without decorations, and mine had to have some flowers, circles, and rickrack. Where the edges come together at the top, I hand sewed rick rack. Then, I added the flowers on top of the rick rack at the corners and circles in between the flowers. (If you want some cool crocheted flower designs, you need the book—Crochet Flowers For Every Wear!) Then, on the bottom, I poked a hole in rick rack and hand sewed it along the bottom where it looks like a little icing decoration. Then, I added one big flower in the center of the square at the top of the cake. I also placed little yellow pins in the centers of all the flowers and circles. My cake has a purpose too: it’s a pincushion.

How many of you have been members of Crochet Soiree since Day 1? I know there’s one special lady who has, and her name is Barbara Moore. Happy birthday Barbara and everyone else here at Crochet Soiree. Here’s to many more!!!!

Wednesday 4/22/10 Happy Earth Day!

2010-04-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

Hope all of you are planning to have a beautiful Earth Day on Thursday! In the spirit of this eco-conscious occasion, I’m trying my hand at crocheting some more green tote bags, and my guide is a book called Enviro-Totes.

This book is really cool. It was first published in 1992, and after a few years, you couldn’t get it anymore, but Leisure Arts has reprinted this old favorite (at the same original 1992 price!) and released it again. The four featured bag designs (all crocheted with cotton yarn) are just as great today as they were back then.

What are you doing to celebrate this wonderful world we live on?

Monday, 4/19/10 CAL Doily Prize

2010-04-19T01:00:00.001-07:00

Ok, maybe I went a little overboard when I purchased this Mega Ball of Aunt Lydia’s Classic Crochet Thread, but if you know me, you know that I love doilies, and I love to crochet them, too.

I received a book of doilies and tablecloths as a gift. I’ve been working on making some of them, so the thread will come in handy, and I hope to use the whole ball. When we decided to do the CAL with my Flower Scarf pattern, I decided to make a doily from this book as a prize.

This is the one that I just finished for the doily prize. The doily is about 16" in diameter, and it’s Ecru. I really do love the way it came out, and I hope whoever wins it loves it as much as I loved making it.

This is the next doily that I plan on making from the book, and I think this one might stay with me, but you never know, you know how crocheters are: we are very giving people. Good luck to everyone who joins in on the CAL. And if you haven’t posted your scarf photo yet, click on over to the Flower Scarf CAL to find out how. The CAL ends April 30th!

4/16/10 Free Pattern Friday: Tea Jacket Bouquet

2010-04-16T01:00:00.000-07:00

The weather is getting warmer, and my thoughts have turned to cold drinks since along with the warm weather comes the humidity here in Kansas. Because of the humidity, I like to grab a little jacket for my glass to help with the sweating process, so I picked these Tea Jacket Bouquet crochet patterns for this week’s Free Friday.

Since I made the last tea jackets, we have managed to break most of the glasses that I purchased especially for them. Fortunately, I still have my 35-year-old, reliable harvest gold glasses that have held up through the years, and I think my little “Tea Jacket Bouquet” looks pretty cute on one of them, and it fits like it was made especially for it. I used Aunt Lydia’s crochet thread, and I loved making the front post and back post stitches on the base of the jacket, and I hope you have fun making your tea jackets, too.

Wednesday, 4/14/10 Joshua Finished his Afghan

2010-04-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

When Joshua decided to make an afghan, he stuck to it and finished it in less than 4 weeks. Along with school, rehearsals, and socializing, he crocheted in his spare time and really late at night. It seemed like the couch should still be warm from his crocheting as I woke to start my crocheting.

Here he is checking to make sure he has all of his tails woven in.

Joshua was so sneaky about who he was actually making this afghan for that I had to keep asking him who he was going to give it to, but he wouldn't tell. I kept telling him that it had better be someone who was worthy of such a wonderful crochet piece and who would appreciate all the time and expense that goes into an afghan. He kept assuring me that the person was worthy, but he wouldn’t tell me who until he had his sister and his dad in the room. Then, as I asked him the question again, he simply replied, “You, Momma.” All I could say was AAAAHHH. I know I didn’t cry at the time, but I now have tears of joy in my eyes as I’m writing this. Ha! Ha!

And just think! It all started with a little help from me and I Can’t Believe I’m Crocheting.

Monday, 4/12/10 Crocheted Prayer Shawls Book

2010-04-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this yet, but Leisure Arts is coming out with another crocheted prayer shawls book, and one of my designs will be in it. I can hardly wait until the book comes out, and I’ll be sure to let you all know when it does.

In the mean time, here’s a picture of the version I made for myself. The yarn I used is the Patons Silk Bamboo, and it can be purchased right here in the store at Crochet Soiree. Oh my gosh, if you haven’t crocheted with this yarn, it is so worth it. After spending so many hours on something that I made for myself, I really enjoyed using this beautiful yarn.

4/9/10 Free Pattern Friday: Chunky Pillows Crochet Patterns

2010-04-09T01:00:00.000-07:00

Here’s really fun, temporarily free crochet pattern for you. Check it out now because you’ll only be able to download the pattern for these three different pillows for free for the next 2 weeks!

My pillows are going to be smaller than the pattern calls for…

…because, once again, I decided to use some acrylic stash yarn for the “Olive Pillow” (wavy pattern).

Then, I had some really funky yellow wool yarn that I received from a good friend of mine. She thought I would come up with something really cool to make with it. I added a strip of Lion Brand purple wool, and I like the way it looks with the cool dotted fabric I found.

For the “Pumpkin Pillow,” I chose to use this very nice goldish cotton yarn, and I really think it will go good with this pillow that I’m covering with a recycled sweater.

Remember this pattern download is free for a limited time only, so be sure to download and save it now!

The pillows are from a book called Total Crochet for the Home, by BJ Berti. Thank you BJ for allowing us to have the patterns for the pillows. I can’t wait to get started on some of the other 25 wonderful projects in the book like the latticework place mat and napkin ring, a zigzag tea cozy, a multi-stripe tote, vintage pot holders, a summer farm afghan, and an openwork table runner—just to name a few.

Sunday, 4/4/10 Memories of Past Easters

2010-04-04T01:00:00.000-07:00

I just keep looking at these eggs and thinking that they need some little crocheted jackets. Oh well, another project to think about when I have nothing else to do. Ha! Ha! That brings me to this story about Easter Memories. I was going through some of my Easter decorations and found the pretty plastic eggs and the basket that I used to use as a little girl for my Easter eggs. No wonder I love all of these colors, and I love the little bunny that I picked up for Megan, too. I started to remember when I was a little younger than Megan and found these pictures of some of my dresses. Of course, my mom made our dresses, and it seemed like we would get a new dress and a pair of pretty white shoes at Easter time or maybe it was just the clothes that she made for different seasons, and they just happened to land around Easter. I’m not sure, but I wanted to share with all of you a few of my pictures from Easters past.

1959—I remember this picture with my cousin Ruthie and my sister on a quilt in our old kitchen at home. We had a lot of family there from Oklahoma spending the holiday with us, and my mom made my dress and Jackie’s and probably the quilt on the floor. I’m sure it was an overall quilt (or jean quilt) because my Mom doesn’t put any of her quilts on the floor unless they are made from jeans or overalls. I loved how my dress stood out, and I remember twirling in it.

In February 1960, it looks like we got some more new dresses, and I love this picture of my mom holding Jackie.

March 1961—This picture was taken just before my Uncle Oris’ wedding (I was the flower girl), and, of course, my mom made my dress and Jackie’s. I still have the dress, hat, basket, and bracelet that I wore in this picture.

September 1961—It looks like we were still able to wear the dresses from the wedding on one of our trips to Oklahoma, and we’re standing with our cousins Darla (Sis), Sue, and Ruthie. I can’t believe my mom let us wear those white dresses and shoes in the red mud of Oklahoma. I seem to remember someone carrying me out there and placing me on the mud. Ha! Ha!

Now when I look back at the pictures, I still wonder how my mom was able to make all the clothes that she did and keep the house clean, laundry done, and food on the table. But she did, and I don’t think she would change a thing. I know I wouldn’t.

Hope you have a lovely Easter! Tell me about your Easters past.

4/2/10 Free Pattern Friday: Table Scents Crochet Pattern

2010-04-02T01:00:00.000-07:00

I chose this crochet pattern for this Free Pattern Friday, and I think I found some yarns in my stash that would look kind of cool. Now to choose between the…

…Red Heart Eco-Cotton or…

…Bernat CottonTots. I hope you have fun making them. Please tell me what kind of yarn you plan on using for your Table Scents projects.

Wednesday, 3/31/10 Crochet-A-Long (CAL)

2010-03-31T01:00:00.000-07:00

I would like to invite anyone who wants to participate to join us here at Crochet Soiree for a Crochet-A-Long (CAL). The pattern we will be using is my free Flower Scarf crochet pattern. I used a cotton/acrylic blend yarn to make my scarf, and it seems to drape really nicely, but you can use whatever yarn you want to. I can’t wait to see all the different yarns that you all use.

Our Flower Scarf Crochet-A-Long Challenge will begin on April 5th and run through April 30. Everyone who completes the CAL and submits an image of their final scarf will be entered in a random drawing for a variety of prizes including books from Leisure Arts, a set of crochet hooks, and a special doily crocheted by ME! Just click here so Doug at Crochet Soiree can tell you exactly how to enter.

The pattern is very fast and easy, so good luck to all of you, and I hope you like making the flower scarf as much as I have designing it and presenting it to you.

Monday, 3/29/10 My Inga Bag Finished

2010-03-29T01:00:00.000-07:00

Guess what? I finally got the finishing touches done on my Inga Bag.

I decided to crochet around some large buttons and then place them in the center of each one of the 16 squares.

I think the yellow centers make the other colors just pop, and besides that, they give the purse some dimension, too. It feels so good to get some of my projects completed even if it took a couple of years to do it. Ha! Ha!

Saturday, 3/27/10 Something Cool for Steph and CrochetWear

2010-03-27T01:00:00.000-07:00

This year, my friend Stephanie volunteered to be our Secretary/Treasurer for the KS My Stitch Crochet Guild, and it has been lots of fun having her on board. She’s so easy going and friendly. She also just learned to crochet a couple of years ago and loves to do freeform crochet. The thing that I love about her is she thinks outside of the box, and she always has some really cool ideas.

When I found this new book, CrochetWear here on Crochet Soiree, and I fell in love with the shawl on the cover of the book, so I was showing Steph the book, and she really fell in love with…

…one of the shrugs in the book called Hex On. Well, I just so happened to have purchased one of the new cottons that my LYS owner had gotten in and thought maybe I would make Steph this little shrug. Here’s a picture of the first hexagon—ssshhh, don’t tell Steph. I can’t wait to finish it and find just the right buttons to go on the front. I’ll make sure I show you her face when she gets her shrug, and I hope it will make her smile.

Thanks Steph for all you do!

3/26/10 Free Pattern Friday: Pincushion Bonnet Crochet Pattern

2010-03-26T01:00:00.001-07:00

I chose this cute Pincushion Bonnet crochet pattern for today’s Free Pattern Friday because I don’t think you can ever have too many pincushions. I think you should decorate each room with at least one. You never know when you will need a pin or needle.

Anyway, when I started the pincushion, I started thinking about what I could put inside for the stuffing. I’ve been felting some wool sweaters lately and remembered that one of them felted really tight, and I thought that it should work really well for the inside of a pincushion.

Then, I started thinking about a quilt that I bought at a garage sale a while back. It was coming apart on the back, and I could clearly see that there was something other than batting on the inside. Much to my surprise, it was another quilt inside. I later found out that a long time ago when times were hard, quilters would use other things inside for batting, maybe another quilt that was starting to wear out or whatever they had on hand. Well, this quilter had placed a hand-stitched Lone Star quilt inside the other quilt. Unfortunately, the quilt was so worn out that I couldn’t salvage any of it, but it was fun finding it. I know you’re wondering what this has to do with a pincushion. Well, I’m going to tell you.

The quilt inside a quilt inspired me. I decided for my pincushion that I would make a cute little pincushion inside of another pincushion. The one inside would be made from two round pieces of a felted sweater and some of its ribbing. I used a round plastic lid and made circles for the top and bottom…

…then I poked-a-hole in them and crocheted around the circles. Then I cut a strip of ribbing and crocheted on each long edge, then crocheted the top to the ribbing, then crocheted the bottom to the ribbing, but before I sealed it up, I stuffed some yarn clippings inside and crocheted the opening up.

I placed the felted pincushion inside the crocheted pincushion. It was almost too cute to hide away inside, but I think whoever ends up with my pincushion in 100 years will be very surprised to find such a special little treasure inside. What do you think?

Thursday, 3/25/10 My Crocheted Camera Case

2010-03-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

Look what I finally came up with for my camera case. I knew it was just a matter of getting out the rotary cutter, mat, and ruler to cut three-inch squares of felted sweaters, but that just takes me a long time to make up my mind to do. I love how making something new is so exciting that you don’t want to put it down until it’s done. That’s the way this project was going one morning this week. Of course, I did have to stop and go to work and then think about it all day until I got home and finally got back to it. After I cut the three-inch squares…

…I poked-a-hole in each piece and crocheted all around them. Then, I crocheted the pieces together and cut another piece for the bottom and both ends and crocheted around the edge of them and crocheted them together. Then, I crocheted all the way around the top of bag and made an opening on the next to the last row to run a drawstring through to draw the bag closed. Then, of course, it needed a little flower for embellishment. I am also going to line it with some fabric cut from a skirt. I’ll make sure I show you the finished bag as soon as I get the rotary cutter out again. Ha! Ha!

Tuesday, 3/23/10 Another Distraction From My Crochet Project

2010-03-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

I got sidetracked again the other day. Joshua has been trying to talk me into making some of his friends some crocheted animals for their graduation presents. Well, I was a little bored with the afghan that I’ve been making, so it wasn’t hard for me to pick up the Kyuuto Japanese Crafts Amigurumi book and find…

…this cute little Citron Puppy. Crocheting the different parts was fun, fast, and easy. The part that always takes me the longest is stuffing and sewing the pieces together. I decided I wanted to finish the puppy and give it to Joshua for his opening night at the All City Play—Footloose instead of flowers. I named the dog Drama Dog and told Joshua that he could will the dog to the Drama Department at his high school.

I’m not sure what he’ll do with Drama Dog. Sometimes Joshua thinks I’m not so cool, but this night, I was kind of cool and weird at the same time. But he loves me anyway because he has to. Ha! Ha!

Monday, 3/22/2010 Flower Scarf Update

2010-03-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

Oops...We're so sorry!!! If you've read the comments on the 3/19 Free Pattern Friday: Flower Scarf crochet pattern entry, you've discovered that we made a couple of boo-boos in the pattern. To make my scarf, you'll need 4 balls of 1-3/4 oz. per ball medium weight yarn not 4 balls of 3/4 oz. per ball medium weight yarn, and Row 1 will result in 20 dc not 22 dc. If you printed your pattern before around 9:00 a.m. central time this morning, you need to pencil in these corrections! The corrected pattern is available now. Sorry again!

Monday, 3/22/10 Finished Adult-Sized Hexagon Jacket

2010-03-22T01:00:00.000-07:00

I know you are probably getting sick of hearing about the Hexagon Jacket, but I can’t believe how easy they are to crochet. When my sister Jackie said that she wanted one for herself, I set out to make her one. (Remember the first one that I attempted ended up being a tiny bear’s sweater.) Well, I decided to bump up the yarn size and make it easier on myself. I wanted to create something that she would like and use her colors. So I chose some Vanna’s Choice yarn and some other acrylic yarn that I had that went with the color scheme. I’m hoping that Jackie will want to wear this to the International Spring Quilt Market being held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in May. Since I won’t be able to go with her, she can take this jacket and think of her sister back at home.

As I was finishing the jacket, I was so excited to see the end that I decided to make a completely different edging around the sleeves and the bottom of the jacket. I really like the way it looks, and I hope Jackie will like it, too.

I’ve been waiting for just the right project to use this big button on, and I think I found it. What do you think? Although, after I got the jacket done and started taking pictures of it, I’m not sure if it’s even going to fit her, and it looks really blocky. But Jackie has a way of making even a gunny sack look good, so I’m hoping she can pull this one off, too. Ha! Ha!

Saturday, 3/20/10 Joshua and His Third Crochet Project

2010-03-20T01:00:00.000-07:00

Ok. I think I’ve hooked another one. What do you think? Joshua started his third project with some of the left over yarn from my Granny Square Swap. He wasn’t quite satisfied with the small choice of colors that were left and asked politely if I could get him some more Vanna’s Choice in more of a variety of colors. Since I’m such a nice mom, I went right to the store the next evening and picked him up ten different colors and some black for the borders.

He chose a pattern from Farmhouse Crochet called Quick and Easy Afghan. He has also taken over the basket that I crocheted. He puts his yarn and hook case in it and tucks it under his arm and carries it from room to room or just simply sits beside me on the couch. I’m really enjoying watching him and answering his questions along the way.

I can’t wait until he starts the borders around each strip. I can’t believe how fast he is already, and he’s accurate, too. He’s already on the fourth strip of six that the pattern calls for. Tomorrow will week two. But remember, he did tell me he’s a natural. Ha! Ha!

3/19/2010 Free Pattern Friday: Flower Scarf Crochet Pattern

2010-03-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

For this Friday’s free crochet pattern, I would like to share one of my own designs with everyone. This Flower Scarf is really a fun and easy pattern, and I hope you all have as much fun making it for yourself or for a gift as I did designing it.

Wouldn’t this be a fun design for a crochet-a-long? It would be quick to make, and the weather’s still cool enough for a light-weight scarf—especially one that celebrates spring flowers!

Thursday, 3/18/10 Mary Engelbreit and Crochet

2010-03-18T01:00:00.000-07:00

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’m a real big fan of Mary Engelbreit. I was at Michaels the other day, and they had a bin full of writing journals, blank note cards with envelopes, and little packages of Kleenexes with her illustrations on them. Since I needed some writing journals, I thought it would be fun to have hers, and you can never have enough blank note cards with Mary’s cute drawings. I love how my crocheted hearts look with Mary’s stuff.

What do you think?

Tuesday, 3/16/10 Happy St. Patrick’s Day

2010-03-16T01:00:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow’s St. Patrick’s Day! Have you got your green ready to go? I don’t usually do anything special for St. Patrick’s Day, but maybe it’s because I’m not Irish? I’m not sure, but I always try to wear something green on St. Patrick’s Day. Don’t you remember going to school, and if you didn’t have green on, someone would always pinch you? I feel like someone will still do that if I don’t wear green even now. I guess I could use the crocheted shamrock that some of our guild members made last year…

…but it looks like I would have to finish it in order to wear it. Ha! Ha! Oh well, I think I have a green jacket that I could wear until I get my crocheted shamrock finished.

Tell me if you do anything special on St. Patrick’s Day.

Monday, 3/15/10 Hands and Some Faces at Twist

2010-03-15T01:00:00.000-07:00

I know this isn’t hands, but I couldn’t resist having Shelly take our picture as we were hugging. At our last crochet guild meeting, we learned to make a little sock. For a follow up to our program, Pam decided to do a crochet-along the next two Saturdays for the guild members that wanted some help completing socks. Well, I decided to join in on the fun, and once I got there and had wound my two balls of sock yarn, I decided not to make socks. I couldn’t help but get my camera out and start taking pictures. Most people know that when I’m around, my camera is not far from me, and I can at any given moment bring it out and start taking pictures. This day, I was intrigued by everyone’s hands.

I love looking at the different way crocheters holds their yarn and hooks. I also enjoyed just being with my friends and watching their hands. If you look close enough, each one tells a story all its own.

Mimi was working very hard with her hands, too, but I couldn’t resist snapping this picture of her in that really cute crocheted vest.

Does anyone else out there like to watch hands at work like I do?

Saturday, 3/13/10 Just A Little Poke-A-Hole-In-It Explanation

2010-03-13T01:00:00.000-08:00

When I was telling you about cutting sweaters and poking holes in them and then crocheting around them, I was talking about manufactured sweaters—not hand knitted sweaters. I have found with most manufactured sweaters (those that are machine woven), you can actually just cut them and crochet right on the edges without them fraying much (you might find a few tufts of fiber come out, but after a few washings, they stop). I tried zigzagging the edges, and it only stretches the fabric and makes the edges all wavy.

I cut the front out of one sweater (I poked-a-hole-in-it and crocheted all around the opening). Then, I used the sweater pieces for patterns and laid them down on the crocheted motifs and cut the crocheted fabric; then, I took the crocheted pieces to the sewing machine and zigzagged all around them. Then, I crocheted around the crocheted pieces (to make them straight). And finally, I crocheted the two pieces together. That was about 5 years ago, and that design is still holding up after many washes. I have also cut the cuffs and bands off of quite a few sweaters and added edgings to the bottom of the sleeves and the edges of the waists, and all of them are still holding up.

This is a picture of one of the sweaters that I added lots of rows of different colors and edging to in order to make the sleeves longer. I like it because edging can jazz the sweaters up just a little or a lot depending on how many rows of edging you add. That’s what is so fun about adding crochet to sweaters.

3/12/10 Free Pattern Friday: Hot Pad Pizzazz Crochet Pattern

2010-03-12T01:00:00.000-08:00

I was so excited when I saw this Free Friday Crochet Pattern—Hot Pad Pizzazz. I met the designer of this pattern here in Wichita at the LYS Twist. She’s a frequent customer there, and I met her almost two years ago. Shelly introduced me to her, and we started talking about how she had recently moved to Wichita with her husband’s work. I asked her what she was working on (like I ask everyone else), and she said that she was editing a pattern for Leisure Arts. She explained that she had worked for them while living in Little Rock and still did some freelance editing for them. This was even before I started blogging for Crochet Soiree. I could hardly wait to try Joan’s patterns out.

Here’s my version of Joan’s Hot Pad Pizzazz, and I loved how easy the patterns were to follow—and they were fast, too. Thank you, Joan Beebe, and hopefully, I will bump into you sometime real soon.

Thursday, 3/11/10 March is National Crochet Month

2010-03-11T01:00:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is—March. Did everyone know that March is designated as National Crochet Month? I’m not sure which year they did this, but if anyone knows, feel free to tell me. What a fun thing to do. I’ve thought about things that I could do in the month of March to celebrate National Crochet Month, but it seems like I already do a lot of them.

1. I promote the National Crochet Guild everywhere I go.
2. Promote Crochet Soiree.
3. I’m carrying on the presidency in my local crochet guild (which is a chapter of the national guild).
4. I’m organizing a display of crochet in the windows at our LYS for the month of March.
5. I crochet items for charity.
6. I try to wear something crochet every day.
7. I crochet every day. (Unless I’m so sick that I can’t hold a hook in my hand!)
8. I’ve recently tried a few new stitches—front post dc and back post dc.
9. I teach whoever wants to be taught to crochet.
10. I crochet in public.
11. I try new yarns and new hooks.
12. I'm trying to figure out which design I’m going to enter into the Crochet Design Contest for the Knit and Crochet show in July.

Tell me about some of the different things you’re going to do in the month of March to celebrate National Crochet Month. Maybe I need to include those in my list, too.

Tuesday, 3/9/10 Washing Your Crochet Hooks

2010-03-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

I was crocheting along the other day, making some hot pads and dishcloths, when all of a sudden it felt like my hook was sticking to my yarn. Have you ever had that happen to you?

Well, I took my hooks to the sink and dipped them in some hot soapy water and then rinsed and dried them well. I’ll tell you what; those hooks are gliding right through the yarn now. I think sometimes the oils and lotions on my hands or maybe the acrylic yarns make them sticky. Anyway, I thought this might help someone else with sticky hook problems.

Reminder: Only wash aluminum, steel, or plastic hooks.

Monday, 3/8/10 Looms and an Angel

2010-03-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

I received this surprise at my door this week. Is that the loom that makes those unknown loomy things that I can’t resist buying every time I see them? Yes, it is, and there is more than one size of loom in the box. These are called Love and Money Looms, and one of my friends (let’s just call her Angel), somehow she got them to me, and I’m grateful. Let’s just say, she is one of the most caring and generous people I have come to know. She gives of her time everyday, never asks anything in return, and she makes me smile and cry at the same time.

Now, please forgive me for walking away from some of my crochet projects while I dig in my stash to find just the right yarn and figure out how to use my new looms. Be back soon.

Saturday, 3/6/10 Joshua’s Second Crocheted Scarf

2010-03-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

Joshua has completed his second scarf, and it’s already around the neck of the recipient that lives in New York City, and she goes to the school where Joshua is to attend next year. He worked diligently on it the weekend before Valentine’s Day in order for him to get it to her before Valentine’s Day.

He’s been rehearsing for the play “Footloose” since January, and we’ve had a hard time finding the time together for me to explain an edging to him. When I’m awake, he’s not, and when he’s awake, I’m not. You know how that goes? It was cute…he was so worried about one place on the edge where it looked a little different. I texted him and told him to try putting a single crochet edging all the way around. He tried that and stopped because it didn’t look perfect to him. He wanted my opinion before he continued on. When I got home that evening, I ripped out the single crochets and placed 1 sc, ch 2, skip 2 stitches, 1 sc all the way around, and it seemed to do the trick of hiding that little imperfection.

But of course, I let him be the judge of whether it was hidden enough when he got home that evening. And much to my surprise, he was pleased, and the scarf went in the mail the next day. He said he had thought about something similar, but was afraid to try it. I encouraged him to just to go ahead, and if it didn’t work out, he could always rip it out and start over. With time, he will have the confidence to just go with his instincts--especially when his momma isn’t there to help so much anymore. What do you think?

Friday, 3/5/10 Free Friday Pattern: Lacy Oval Crochet Pattern

2010-03-05T01:00:00.000-08:00

I’m not sure if I told you this, but I love doilies. And I chose this Lacy Oval crochet pattern for today's Free Friday Pattern because I had extra thread left over from the “Suncatchers” that I made last week. I think there will be enough left to complete this doily, and if not, I probably have some stashed away somewhere.

Here’s what I have completed so far...

I hope you have as much fun making this doily as I am. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

Cool Crochet Display & Gifts Ideas

2010-03-04T01:00:00.000-08:00

I thought I would share with you all a little something that I dreamed up a couple of years ago and what one of my friends thought of.

My best friend Debbie gave me this etched vase one year for my birthday. I used it occasionally for cut flowers, but most of the time it sat on a shelf unseen until I would get flowers. One day, after I had completed some washcloths, I decided to see what the washcloths would look like in the vase, and I discovered that I liked being able to see the colors of the washcloths through the glass.

Then, when I was cleaning out one of my cabinets, I found a plastic lid from a candle, and it was like a lightbulb going on. I thought maybe if I could crochet around it, it would fit right on top of the vase with the washcloths, and, voila, it worked. I think it looks good and it helps keep my washcloths clean and dust free. Now, I can enjoy looking at my washcloths and the pretty etched vase everyday and not just when I have fresh flowers.

Another friend of mine, Susie, shared a fun thing she had come up with. She crocheted baby washcloths and rolled them up and put them in a ceramic BABY vase that she had gotten at the second hand store. She was making it for a friend for a baby shower she was attending. How cool is that?

Then, I have this turquoise vintage vase that I thought the washcloths would look cool in, too. I thought that it would be another cool idea to give a new mother a pretty vase with some special soaps or bath salts and some crocheted washcloths in her favorite colors.

Tell me about some of your cool ideas.

Phillip the Fish

2010-03-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

I would like to know if anyone else has this problem:

You know when you have a couple of things that need to be finished, and you’ve been working on them for a long time, and you get bored with them, and then someone (Joshua) talks about crocheting stuffed toys for his friends, and then you see a pattern for a crocheted fish, and it looks like it would be something that you could make in a couple of hours?

Whew, that was a long sentence!

Then, you stop working on this and get so involved in the new project that you finish…

this cute little crocheted fish, and name him Phillip. I just hope one of Joshua's friends likes Phillip, and I hope Joshua can part with him if that happens.

The pattern is from Crochet Today July/August 2009. I still haven’t gotten back to my other crochet projects. (sigh) Oh well, maybe tomorrow…

Oh, and if you find yourself being similarly distracted by cute little crocheted animals, you might want to check out some of the amigurumi books in the Crochet Soiree store!

Star Doily

2010-03-01T01:00:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with you the cool star doily I found on one of my treasure hunts. Rosina kidnapped me on Saturday and took me to a little shop in our Old Town district called Mrs. O’Learys. It’s the type of shop that has different booths with different sellers’ collections. We made out really well in one seller’s booth that was having a sale of 50% off of everything, and they had a lot of crocheted doilies. Rosina found a filet piece that was in the shape of a butterfly. This star doily is just one of the doilies that I found. I’ve never seen one in this shape, have you?

This star doily is made up of the tiniest little motifs that are no more than an inch in diameter, and then, as the stitcher crocheted the last row of the motif, the motif is attached to the next motif, and so on, and so on. The whole piece only measures from one point to the other a whopping 11". I’m almost positive that the person selling the star doily doesn’t crochet because otherwise surely it would have cost more than the lump sum of a $1.

The New Yarn and the Crocheted Hexagon Granny Baby Jacket

2010-02-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

Remember when I told you that I couldn’t stop making Hexagon Granny Baby Jackets? Well, last weekend, when I took them to show my sister Jackie, she said she wanted me to make one to fit her. Well, since I usually spoil my sister, I thought…Hey, that new yarn would probably look pretty neat in a jacket in her size. They have all the colors that she likes, and her request gave me an excuse to go and buy all the colors that they had. I started to make the hexagon and then decided that it needed a little contrasting color, so I picked up some of my leftover sock yarn and got to this point…

I got to thinking, man this is going to take forever to make an adult-size jacket from this small yarn. Then I thought, you know if the jacket looks cute in infant and toddler sizes, wouldn’t it look cute really small? That made me think, hmmmm…the only tiny thing that I could think of that was that small was Darla Dearlin. Remember the bear that I crocheted from the Summer Bear Free Friday Pattern? So I decided that Darla was going to be the recipient of the jacket.

I was positive I could find just the right button for her jacket from this assortment, and I chose a little pinkish button. I think the jacket turned out pretty darned cute.

What do you think? Sorry Jackie, cute and tiny won over adult-size jacket this time.

Free Pattern Friday: Floral Suncatchers Crochet Patterns

2010-02-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

I chose these Floral Suncatchers crochet patterns today because I would just like to see the sun. I’m a little tired of the clouds and the wintry mix of moisture that has hit this winter. We’re expecting more snow in my neck of the woods. Oh well, only 6 more weeks! Maybe these Floral Suncatchers will finally get to catch some rays. Ha! Ha!

I used a size 10 steel crochet hook and size 10 thread, and my suncatchers still ended up being bigger than the pattern says they’re supposed to be.

My suncatchers ended up being 10"…

and 12" instead of 8" and 10".

I hope you have as much fun making these as I did.

Beaded Crochet Bag

2010-02-25T01:00:00.000-08:00

One of the polls here at Crochet Soiree asked the question, “Have you ever designed something with beads?” Well, that reminded me of this cute little bag that I designed with beads. I just made it up as I went along.

This bag hangs behind my bathroom door along with these pretty doilies. You know the kinds of things that are just tucked away. You look at them every day, but you don’t think too much about them until someone asks a question about them.

Tell me about some of the things that you’ve made with beads.

New Yarn I Found

2010-02-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

I can’t believe I found this yarn. It reminds me of the yarn I used to use when I first started crocheting. I just remember a fine yarn that had a sparkle or thin shiny thread running through it. I used to make baby sweaters, hats, and afghans out of the sparkly yarn. Does anyone else remember that yarn and what its name was? This new yarn calls for a size 1 steel hook, and that’s the size that I used to make my crocheted booties.

One of the men that I work with saw the aqua bootie that I made and asked if I would be willing to make his brand-new granddaughter a pink pair. Of course, I couldn’t resist going and getting more yarn that evening and whipping this pair of booties up for his new granddaughter. Since I had forgotten to take a picture of them, he was kind enough to hold the booties so that I could take a quick photo. He was so cute and had to show everyone that came into his office those little pink booties.

The Crochet Dude and His Hat Patterns

2010-02-22T01:00:00.000-08:00

Look what I bought from the Crochet Soiree store. I have been looking for "The Crochet Dude" Drew Emborsky’s books ever since they came out, and I finally got around to ordering In All Caps. I’ve wanted to try one of his patterns for a long time and thought that the “Cabled Tam” would be easy and something I could finish quickly. I was right, and I chose some leftover yarn from the Granny Square Swap (Vanna’s Choice “Purple Print”). Of course, I ran out before I could complete the band, but I finished the band off with “Purple Mist”.

I like how it looks and love how stretchy the fabric is with all of the cables and FPdcs and BPdcs. My husband was so kind to model it for the picture. I think it would work well for a man's hat, too. What do you think?

Have you all seen Drew’s never-before-published Earflap Hat instant download pattern here on Crochet Soiree? It looks like it would be fun to make, and you can purchase it right here and get started today. Those pom poms look like fun—especially since I have every size of pom pom maker, thanks to my friends and secret pal. I think this will be the next hat I’m going to crochet.

Preparations for Spring Market

2010-02-20T01:00:00.000-08:00

My sister (Jackie) called me today and was telling me about the preparations for her trip to the International Quilt Market Spring 2010. She said that she was designing a new quilt pattern for her new line of fabric and would like my opinion on it and if it needed any crochet. Well, since I’m such a good sister, I stopped everything and went to her house.

She had to show me her tiny booth that our friend Stephanie had put together for her. I think my crocheted owls would feel right at home in her booth. What do you think?

I mentioned in an earlier blog that Jackie’s newest pattern was the Junk Bag. Well, here’s the miniature version of the bag. Only Steph has the patience to make that tiny thing.

Now all Jackie has to do is recreate the tiny booth into her normal size booth, and it will be without her sister’s assistance this time. I will be staying back home to watch my little boy, Joshua, graduate from high school. Anyway, we had fun talking about her new quilt pattern and how she spent six hours playing in her tiny booth and laughing. Believe it or not, we decided that her quilt didn’t need any more crochet, except for a tree branch.

Free Pattern Friday: Pretty Purse Set Crochet Patterns

2010-02-19T01:00:00.000-08:00

First of all, I want to tell you what a friend of mine asked me the other day. She asked, “Tamara, do you ever just sit down and crochet a whole pattern from start to finish without changing something?” And I said, “Yes I have, but sometimes my brain wants to do something different. And that’s what happened with these Free Pattern Friday Pretty Purse Set crochet patterns. I had every intention of following the pattern, but then I decided to use the left over sock yarn from my crocheted socks.

The glasses case came out too big, so I got to thinking that I really needed a hook case for my new wooden hooks, and I thought this crochet piece might be just the right size. Well, guess what. It was.

Then it was off to my fabric stash to find just the right piece of fabric for the inside. On the way there, this pink sweater caught my eye, and I thought it would give just the right padding the hook case would need. Then I thought this green fabric (recycled from a shirt that no longer fit) would look good for a flap.

Then I decided to make a tab from the neckline of a felted sweater. Then I was off looking for a button.

Then I decided to poke-a-hole-in the sweater and crochet all the way around it so that I could connect the sweater and the crocheted piece. Then back to the sewing machine to sew the fabric and crochet piece together. After sewing the button and tab on, I decided I needed to add 2 snaps.

My friend Pam was right. I don’t normally stick with a pattern without adding my own touches of funkiness to them. Whew…now I think I need a nap. I can’t wait to see all of your “Pretty Purse Sets” as you all can probably stay on task better than me. Ha! Ha!

Organizing Project Sheets

2010-02-18T01:00:00.000-08:00

I think I’ve mentioned before that I would like to get more organized. Well, my sister has always created a project sheet for all of the projects that she completes. So I thought maybe I should start doing that.

Well I did cut the yarn pieces that I used for each Hexagon Baby Jacket. Now, actually getting the yarns onto a piece of scrapbook paper (Heaven knows I have plenty), and then writing a little description about each one of them is another thing. I love to think about being organized, but I just want to move onto the next project. Ha! Ha!

Tell me about how you organize and keep track of the projects that you make.

Snow and Crochet Weather

2010-02-16T01:00:00.000-08:00

This is the view from my back door. I don’t know about you all, but I’m already tired of the snow. Although it does help me stay in and want to crochet more on those big projects, especially afghans.

I started another ripple afghan, and I’m making it out of Lion Brand Wool-Ease. I made my husband an afghan with a little bit of wool in it, and I find myself dragging it around with me during these cold nights that we’ve been having. Wool-Ease has some really pretty colors that I chose to use in this afghan for myself. I picked an olivey green, purple, fuschia, dusty turquoise, and of course, a dark brown that I added between each row of the colors. I like how it divides the colors and sort of makes them pop.

Tell me about what you’re working on when you can’t get outside.

Hexagon Baby Jacket

2010-02-15T01:00:00.000-08:00

About a year ago, the knitting community at my LYS started making an Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Baby Surprise Jacket. I thought it was very cute, but I didn’t want to make it because it was knitted. Then, my friend Pam brought this really cool crocheted Hexagon Baby Jacket to one of our guild meetings.

She showed us how when you fold the hexagon just right it makes a front and a sleeve and then you make two hexagons and sew them together with a back seam and two shoulder seams. Well I didn’t think too much about it until I saw Molly’s (one of the members here on Crochet Soiree) hexagon baby jacket. I thought hmmmm…I have some more yarn left over from the granny square swap, so I went and found some fun colors and started making the hexagon. I ran out of that yarn and decided to make a patchwork type hexagon square for the other side.

The first one was so much fun I decided to make another one. The details are what take me so long. The fabric to reinforce the buttons, and, of course, a label, and don’t forget about the buttons. The second jacket that I made, I ended up crocheting around buttons to get the right color. That’s what is so fun about crochet. You can crochet over something like a button and make it a different color.

Then, I thought wouldn’t this look cute in a smaller version, so I had to make one out of Patons Grace yarn. I think it turned out really cute, and I think this one going to go to our newest grandson who’s named after my dear husband, John. I have Molly to thank for inspiring me to try making this cute little Hexagon Baby jacket.

Random Act of Kindness

2010-02-13T01:00:00.000-08:00

This is what I received yesterday at work. Rosina brought the bouquet back to me while I was crocheting on my lunch break. I was surprised as I usually am when I receive flowers. I thought to myself, John is a very thoughtful person and does buy me flowers sometimes, but when I read the card, it just said:

Then I kept looking for John’s name, but all I found inside was “Someone is Thinking of You”. I had been chosen as the lucky winner of our “Make Someone Smile” program at one of the local flower shops. And I looked up at Rosina and asked her, “Who would send this to me?” with a tear in my eye. And she smiled and said “Me!” Rosina got a big hug, and she made me smile and cry at the same time.

Tell me about your friends and what they do to make you smile.

Free Pattern Friday: Hot Pad Roundup Crochet Patterns

2010-02-12T01:00:00.000-08:00

I chose these crochet patterns for this Free Friday because I had some sugar ‘n cream yarn in my stash and thought these would be something fun to make. I was right. They were fun to make, so I decided to use all the yarn from the skein and make as many as I could. These were the Super Size skeins, and I made one hot pad, two pot holders, and one tiny pot holder that I’ll give to my granddaughter to use in her play kitchen or when she helps her momma in the kitchen. She’s such a big help, and these were so much fun, I went out and purchased more yarn to make more of them.

Here's what I made. I think I will take the hot pad and two pot holders and give them to my guild for a door prize at our next meeting. I hope you like making them as much as I did.

My Aunt Marthie’s Visit

2010-02-11T01:00:00.000-08:00

I love this picture of my mom and her sister, Aunt Marthie. Last weekend, Aunt Marthie was here to visit, and they stopped by my house. I hadn’t seen my aunt for several years, and it’s always good to spend time her. She’s one of those aunts that you just love to be around, and she was always the fun one. When we would go and visit her, we would put jigsaw puzzles together, play the piano, go swimming, and whatever else the kids wanted to do.

She is always interested in what I’m doing and, of course, wanted to know what I had been working on. So I showed her a few things, and she confided in me that she always wanted to learn to read a crochet pattern. She also told me that she had learned to crochet from her sister-in-law who is left-handed. The things that my aunt crochets are things like very simple afghans, and I taught her how to make the baby booties that my family has been crocheting for about 50 years. Aunt Marthie told me that she has always wanted to crochet doilies but had never had anyone to teach her how to read a pattern.

Since Aunt Marthie was going to be here for a few days and hadn’t brought anything with her to work on, I decided to make her a little crochet care package of Teach a Group of Kids to Crochet by Kay Meadors, a ball of DMC Senso, hooks, and a bag to carry it all in.

I told her that the book had some easy patterns in it for her to follow and explains how to make the basic stitches and what all they are called. All she needs now is a pad of post it notes, and she should be good to go. I emailed her yesterday, and she said that she had taken the book out a couple of times, and she had gotten interrupted each time. But she said that she would let me know as soon as she dug into it. I wish she lived closer so that I could help her with reading patterns. She really is a fast learner and “Smart” (that’s the nickname that my mom named her when she was a child). Isn’t that cute?

Cool Crocheted Basket

2010-02-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

I’m not sure how I stumbled onto this pattern, but I did. I have been eyeing this Serenity Chunky yarn for quite some time, too. Anyway, I noticed the pattern was designed to use with this very yarn, and it’s from Deborah Norville's Collection. The crocheted basket pattern was designed by Vicki Blizzard, and since the yarn was on sale, I could justify buying it. Ha! Ha! The pattern called for two skeins of yarn, and since I wanted my basket to be a little taller, I decided to purchase three skeins. I love how fast the basket was to make, and the pattern is super easy. I think my granny squares look neat in it waiting for me to sew them together.

And I had just enough yarn to make a very large flower. It will go into the bag with all the other flowers that I intend on embellishing something with.

Valentine’s Day is Coming Soon!

2010-02-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

Do you remember when we were kids, and it was the week before Valentine’s Day? I remember going home and asking for a shoebox to take to school with me. Then, once you got to school with it, you would cover it with construction paper, cut out hearts and cupids, and glue them to your special mailbox. And we had to make sure we didn’t forget to cut a hole in the top of the shoebox lid. This must have been an early form of scrapbooking, don’t you think? Well, I’m sure if I could’ve crocheted back then, I would’ve made crocheted hearts and doilies with heart shapes in them for my box.

I found this pattern designed by Cylinda Mathews and couldn’t resist making it, and Crochet Soiree has a Circle of Love doily pattern that would be cool for Valentine’s Day, also. Tell me about the things you remember making for Valentine’s Day and if you do anything special now.

Weaving in Ends

2010-02-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to remind everyone that when you begin and finish off your crochet project, you should leave a tail of about 6" for weaving in. One of our KS My Stitch guild members asked me to talk about this. She had been given some squares to make an afghan, and someone had not left long enough tails to weave in. After she sewed the squares together and laundered it, guess what. It came apart at the places that didn’t have long enough tails for weaving. She wanted me to remind all of you that if you receive something that doesn’t have long enough tails to weave in, there is a product call Fray Check that works great for just this very thing. Now, I have to tell about how I learned the hard way about leaving longer tails. Here’s my story:

Back when I first learned to crochet, I didn’t know that you were supposed to leaves tails to weave in. I have made numerous doilies, afghans, tablecloths, etc., without leaving 6" tails. I didn’t even know there were books out there to tell you all about this. I had what I had inherited from my grandmother, and all those pattern books did was give you patterns with little explanation on how to make anything. Anyway, when I was first starting to make doilies, I received a subscription to Magic Crochet as a gift, and I loved that magazine. I would try and make everything in there before the next one would arrive. I would sometimes rip out projects just to make another one because I couldn’t afford to go and buy anymore crochet thread.

One issue of the magazine had a square tablecloth made in the filet stitch with butterfly designs on all four sides. I used bits and pieces of all the thread that I had, and I was so proud of it, and my neighbor decided she wanted to purchase it from me. At the time, our fence had blown over that ran between our yards, so I told her that I would trade her for our part of the fence. She agreed, and everyone was so happy. Until it came time to wash that tablecloth, and afterwards, she came over and said, “Look what happened to my tablecloth; it came apart in different places all over.” I took a look at it and saw that it came apart at all the joins of the new threads. I had to sew it back together for her with sewing thread. That was my hard lesson on not leaving tails to weave in. I always leave tails now.

I also found out from a friend of mine about the Clover Chibi needles that work great for yarn. They have a curve on the end that works perfectly for weaving your tails in. I never used to like to thread a needle and weave in ends, but now I don’t even mind with the Chibi needles. I hope my story helps someone not make the same mistake that I did. Happy weaving in ends!

Free Pattern Friday: Lacy Hearts Crochet Patterns

2010-02-05T01:00:00.000-08:00

Here's the crochet pattern I picked for today's Free Pattern Friday.

When I first saw these designs, I thought they would be a great projects to make for Valentine’s Day. I started out making the #2 heart and really had fun making it, and then I chose to do #4, then #1.

On the #1 heart, I was having trouble keeping my place, so I found my trusty post-it-notes, and when I used those, I was able to keep my place a lot better, so #1 was fun to make, too.

The last one that I chose to do was the #3 heart, wondering all along how in the world it would become a heart, but sure enough, as soon as you push your stitches together along the ribbon and tie the ribbon into a bow, voila it becomes a real heart.

I hope you have as much fun making these hearts as I did. Wouldn’t it be fun to make a chain of hearts and use it as a garland. Oops, another project to do. Ha! Ha!

Rian and Joshua

2010-02-04T01:00:00.000-08:00

Rian and Joshua have been friends for a couple of years now. They met last year when Rian was a freshman, and she started hanging out with the drama kids at school. They have a lot of fun hanging out together, and I love hearing them make fun of each other and watching how they clown around.

When Joshua finished crocheting the scarf that he made for Rian, he wanted to take it to her right away, and he did. But I made him take the camera so that he could get her reaction on film.

I just love her reaction when she found out that he made it and not me. I think she likes it. What do you think?

Farmhouse Crochet Book

2010-02-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

When I first saw this Gooseberry Patch Farmhouse Crochet book, I immediately thought of my friend Susie. She’s just a farmgirl at heart. The patterns inside are really neat…

and I can’t stop thinking about the chair cushion…

and the pillow.

I love the designs and the colors they’ve used. Plus there are 13 more designs that I haven’t even mentioned. Anyway, you can purchase your own book here on Crochet Soiree. I know my friend Susie is going to want this book as soon I show her mine.

Cool New Crochet Books

2010-02-01T01:00:00.000-08:00

I’ve been slowly but surely working on my granny squares from the swap I was in before Christmas. This has been fun and challenging at the same time. Anyway, it’s challenging because it’s a little monotonous doing the same thing over and over.

I keep looking at these two new books and wanting to break away from my squares to try out some of the cluster stitches from 108 Crochet Cluster Stitches by Darla Sims or one or two of the thread motifs from 50 Fabulous Crochet Thread Motifs by Jean Leinhauser. I keep telling myself, NO, not today, but there’s always tomorrow, right?

Cool Crochet Happenings

2010-01-30T01:00:00.000-08:00

My obsession with cleaning my craft room is getting worse. It all started when I started purchasing a magazine that’s called Studios. This magazine features some of the coolest craft rooms/offices/studios from all over the country. I just love looking at all the ways that people organize things and the neat spaces where they create their art. What a surprise to open the most recent Studios magazine and find my friend, “The Crochet Dude” Drew Emborsky’s studio featured.

Then, since I am a CGOA member, I receive Crochet magazine with my membership, and I got my March issue in the mail last week. I opened the magazine and much to my surprise again, I find my friend Drew’s little crochet books on the second page.

And that’s not all! Inside the magazine, I found his patterns for an afghan and pillows. How cool is that?

I’ve really got to order his crochet books. All his patterns look like they would be fun to make.

It just makes me very happy to see crochet being recognized as a true form of art. Crochet is right up there with knitting, quilting, weaving, and all the other crafts too numerous to list on here. Go Drew!!!!

Free Pattern Friday: Dandy Dishcloths Crochet Patterns

2010-01-29T01:00:00.000-08:00

I thought these dishcloth crochet patterns would be a nice break from the afghans that I’ve been crocheting. Plus, I like to take small projects along with me when I’m waiting for doctor’s appointments or on my lunch break. Dishcloths are easy to carry along, and they’re easy to slide in and out of your crochet bag. Besides that, these dishcloths are dandy to give as gifts or just keep for you. Have fun making them.

I used some Bernat Organic Cotton and some Sugar ‘n Cream yarn for my dishcloths. Tell me about the yarn you’ll use for yours.

John and Fuzz from Wool Sweaters

2010-01-28T01:00:00.000-08:00

Let me tell you a little something about my dear husband John. He hates fuzz, little pieces of string or thread, grass, or anything that is on our carpet. He spends a lot of time picking up all these things up off of the carpet, as our carpet is brown and shows all of them very well. Just to be ornery, I have thrown little pieces of thread down to see how long it takes him to see them and pick them up. I guarantee you--it’s only a matter of seconds after he comes into the room. Anyway, that’s what is so funny about this little story about sweater fuzz.

John came downstairs grumbling about the fuzz that he kept finding on the floor where he had walked. He said that it was some of the fuzz from the sweaters that I had felted last weekend. He pulled up his jean leg and showed me his sock, and I just started cracking up laughing and remembering that I had used his jeans as the friction that the sweaters needed in the dryer to help with the felting process. No wonder he has sweater fuzz on his socks. Huh?

I couldn’t resist taking this picture as he was trying to stomp the fuzz out of his pants. Ha! Ha!

Our Local Newspaper and Crochet

2010-01-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

I have been rather excited about a couple of articles that have been in the paper the past few days and wanted to share them with all of you. First off, on Wednesday, our local newspaper reported on a woman that lives in one of the neighboring towns who crochets hats for soldiers. This lady is very generous to give of her time and talent.

Then, on Thursday in the Business section of our local newspaper, this article about Shelly Stilger from Twist was in there. The article told about how Shelly was filling a need for a place to go to be with other creative people--whether they crochet, knit, or spin. Of course, I know I’ve said this before, but Shelly is a very generous person, and I think there are a lot of people who think the same thing.

I have found through talking to people about the crafts that they are involved in (whether they are knitters or crocheters), we are all generous people and love to give back to our community, and these are two very generous people that needed to be recognized, and I’m so glad that they were. Tell me about some of the generous people that you know.

So Proud of My Crochet Children

2010-01-25T01:00:00.000-08:00

My daughter Jennifer came to the office where I work the other day to show me her scarf that she had made to go with her new coat. She also wanted to show me the one that she had started and intends on selling in one of the local gift shops. I went shopping on New Year’s Day and discovered that she had already completed that granny square scarf and started another one, plus started watching a 7-week-old baby, and keeping track of her 7-year-old daughter, Megan.

Then I went to find the scarf that Joshua has started and found that he is almost done with his, too. I just know he’s been staying up late crocheting because the last time I looked at it he had just started the third color.

I am so proud of both of them for who they are and what they have become so far, and it’s not just because they know how to crochet either. Ha! Ha!

Inga’s Crocheted Bag

2010-01-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago, some of the KS My Stitch guild members joined in on one of the monthly programs and set out to make this bag. I was one of them, but I knew that my sister would not have the time or patience to take on this project, so I decided to make hers for her. I wanted her to have a new bag to carry with her to the Spring Quilt Show in Portland, Oregon. I had learned to do the bullion stitch and had decided to use little bullion flowerlike circles for the added embellishments in each square. I finished it off by adding a double lining and some recycled handles. I just love how the yellow contrasts against the colors of the squares.

Then I decided I had better get to work on my own bag and chose a different square, which ended up being larger than her square. Then I attached all the squares together, and after a year, I decided to sew the lining and add some pockets on the inside and put the handles on it. But I’m still not quite done with it as I’m going to crochet around some large buttons and add the crocheted buttons to the center of my squares for the added embellishments.

As I have found with most things that I end up making for myself, the projects don’t always get done right away. Oh well, another thing to finish this year. Huh… If anyone is interested, here’s the link to the pattern for the bag and hope you like making it. too: http://www.stricksucht.de/anleitungen/crochetedbag.pdf

Free Pattern Friday: Graceful Bookmarks Crochet Patterns

2010-01-22T01:00:00.000-08:00

I thought these Graceful Bookmark crochet patterns would be something fun to make. I know I’ve received bookmarks as a gift, and I love them. I don’t get to read as much as I would like to, but I think bookmarks are great gifts. The most recent thing that I’ve used my bookmarks for are keeping my place in the magazines that I read.

How do you like my bookmarks? I hope you have fun making these Graceful Bookmarks and please tell me about any good books you’ve read lately!

Crocheted Socks

2010-01-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

How many of you have crocheted socks before? All I know is that I keep buying sock yarn and love to look at sock yarn and have even made an afghan out of sock yarn, but I had never completed a pair of socks until now. I started one sock on New Year’s Eve and finished the other one on Saturday after New Year’s Day. I don’t know why I waited so long. These were a lot of fun to make, and I used a free pattern from Red Heart yarn. You start with the cuff and then work your way down to the toe. My challenge was how do you take a picture of socks?

You can take a picture of them on yourself, looking straight down…

sideways or…

drying on the rack. Anyway, if you haven’t ever made socks before, I guarantee that these were easy and a lot of fun.

Now, it’s off to look for that other sock yarn that I just had to have for my stash. Happy sock making.

My New Camera and Case

2010-01-19T01:00:00.000-08:00

Oh my gosh! My dear husband gave me a new camera for Christmas along with a black case.

I realize that I need to have a good strong camera case to protect my camera, but it’s…how can I say, not my taste? I think I’m going to have to cover it, and I think I found just the thing yesterday when I was out thrifting.

I found five wool sweaters that I felted. I’m going to cover the black case with wool felted pieces crocheted together and then maybe embellish it with crocheted flowers. I can’t wait to get started on that project, too. What do you think?

Joshua Learns to Crochet

2010-01-18T01:00:00.000-08:00

I have been waiting for this opportunity for a very long time. For many years now, I have noticed every once in a while that my son will watch me crochet. As soon as I look up, he will look away. I have asked him many times whether he would like for me to teach him, and he always says no. Well, over the Christmas break, he said, “I think I’m ready to learn to crochet now, and I know I can learn because I’m a natural since I have watched you and Jenny for a lot of years.” At the time he told me this, we were at my sister-in-law’s house, and I didn’t have an extra hook or the right kind of yarn with me to start him out. As soon as he woke up the next day, I asked him if he was still ready to learn to crochet and much to my surprise, he said, “Yes.”

The only size J hook I had was a fuchsia pink one (this didn’t deter him either, another surprise), and I wanted to use a lighter color yarn so that he could see his stitches, so I used a skein of “Vanna’s Choice” acrylic yarn in gold. I made a chain of 21 and then made 20 sc back and forth until I had 10 rows, then I called for him to come and try his hand at it. I told him that it’s harder than it looks, but he still picked up the hook, and I told him where to place the hook and how to pull the yarn through, and I have to admit, HE IS a natural crocheter. Within two minutes, he knew where to make the sc. He continued on to complete 2 more rows, and I asked him if he was ready to try a new stitch, and he said he was. So I started him on a double crochet. He admitted this stitch was a little more complicated, but he never gave up and completed three rows of doubles. I told him he was on his way to making a scarf, and he said he would like to make it for one of his friends. I told him that most crocheters give their things away to friends, and he smiled. I went out and bought him a more manly steely gray crochet hook and dark purple, light purple, and white yarn because purple is his friend's favorite color. I am going to show him how to start out with the chain this time, and I’ll make sure I keep you posted on his progress.

Can I say I’m very proud?

Secret Pal Gifts Revealed

2010-01-16T01:00:00.000-08:00

Now that we had our last meeting of the year for KS My Stitch crochet guild, I can share these two items that I made for my secret pal.

Traveler’s Make-Up Container

Genie’s Jewelry Box

Both of these projects were made with patterns from Crochet Totes & Accessories by Lena Maikon. This book was published by Leisure Arts, and you can buy it here on Crochet Soiree. I like how Doug (our main man here on Crochet Soiree) added some pictures under the book cover image of some of the projects that are in the book. That way you know what’s in the book. I like to know what else is in a book before I purchase it, too.

I love these funky cute bags. Has anyone else made any of these bags?

Free Pattern Friday: Party Coasters Crochet Patterns

2010-01-15T01:00:00.000-08:00

I really like these Party Coaster crochet patterns. They were such fun, easy, and fast coasters to make. I think if you had a party, you could work these up in no time, and each person could have their own coaster and maybe take them home with them, too.

But only if they are crochet gift worthy! You know the people I’m talking about. The ones that really understand how much time actually goes into something like these. I hope you enjoy making them as much as I did.

Here's my version!