It's National I Love Yarn Day!

How are you planning to celebrate?

AUSTENtatious Crochet Book Giveaway

All Free Crochet is giving away a book called AUSTENtatious Crochet. It has 32 patterns based on clothing in books by Jane Austen! You can enter here: http://www.allfreecrochet.com/sweeps/Austentatious-Crochet

Howdy, everyone! 

This post is about 2 weeks overdue, but... I have some very, very, {very!!!} exciting news!

After two years of waiting to finish this, I present to you...

The Spring Flower Granny Blanket!

Making the last stitch

The last snip...

And, done!

The edging is from Edie Eckman's Around the Corner Crochet Borders ~ border #3

It's just so hard to believe that it's really, truly, finally done! I'm so happy with the way it turned out!

Happy Hooking!

~Tater

Thrift Store Treasures

Finding yarn-crafted items at thrift stores it my favourite part of thrift store shopping. I love finding a knit or crochet item and imagining the stories behind it of who made it and why and who for. Anyways, here are some pictures of a lovely shawl I found in January.

I found this lovely knitted blanket about 2 weeks ago, and a soon as a saw it, I knew I couldn't leave it there. I just love the crochet ruffle in the middle made with sparkly yarn! Can you imagine all of the time put in to making this?

Happy Hooking!
~Tater

Sneak Peak - Flower Blanket

 

I'm halfway done!

Pretty Flowers

Last night, my family and I went to Hobby Lobby and I found the coolest thing ever! A crochet hook that Lights Up, so you can crochet in the dark!

 {sorry, the picture isn't the greatest quality}

Well, it was dark coming home, and I had a bit of yarn in my purse, so, of course, I had to try it out. I made up this flower pattern to share with you :-)
I thought I would share it now, so you can make them when it's snowy and dreary out to chase away the Winter Blues.

Small Flower Pattern 

You will need:
Some pretty yarn {One or two colours}
I/9 hook {or your favourite!}

Begin with a magic circle
Rnd 1 ~ sc 12 in circle. Close circle, sl st to first st. Ch 1, turn your work
Rnd 2 ~ in back loops only, *sl st in next st, {hdc, dc, hdc} in next st* Rep between * around. Sl st in first st.
Fasten off, weave in ends.

Have fun!
~Tater

P.S. Sneak peek pictures of my blanket will come after Christmas. I'm almost half-way done joining it together!

Ripply Runner

After I finish my flower blanket, {which is coming along rather well, though I still can't make myself work on it faithfully without working on other projects. All of the squares are made, and 5 rows are joined together. I will try to get some pictures up soon.} I want to make a ripple blanket using Lucy's {at Attic24} lovely ripple pattern. So, to test the pattern, I made a runner for the dresser in the spare room, which I hope to convert to a crafty space, where I can keep all of my yarn, hooks, and other crochet supplies.

For the edging, I did a row of single crochet in white, a row of single crochet in gray, and a row of the crab stitch {a.k.a. reverse single} in blue. Doesn't the crab stitch make a lovely edging?

Until next time!

~Tater

Goodknits Doily Blanket Giveaway

The Dainty Squid is hosting a giveaway for Lisa at Goodknits' lovely Doily Blanket! 

Pop on over to enter!

~Tater

The Cassidy Belt

Hey, everyone!

I got a shirt for my birthday that was really cute, but really needed a belt. I was inspired by this belt designed by Edie Eckman. But since it was way out of my budget, and I wanted to wear it in two days, I designed my own belt.

I made a black one, and a brown one.

The Cassidy Belt Crochet Pattern

Hook size: I/9                Worsted weight yarn

Stitches used: Single and Double Crochet, Reverse Single Crochet {abbreviated rvsc}

Begin by chaining enough to fit nicely around your waist, { if it’s an even number, add or subtract one chain, this way you will have an extra stitch to put the last sc in row 2.} plus three.     

Belt:

Row 1: {Working in back loops for this row only} Dc in fourth chain from hook and in ea. st. across

Row 2: *2 sc, chain 2, skip next 2 sc* across, end with sc in top of ch 3

Row 3: Ch 3, dc in ea. st. across

Edging: Rvsc in each st. across top, rvsc 5 sts evenly down the side, rvsc in unworked loops in bottom of foundation ch, rvsc 5 sts evenly up the other side.

Fasten off, weave in ends.

Tie:

I double-stranded the yarn for the tie to make it thicker.

Ch about the same amount as for the foundation ch on the belt, plus 20 or so extra, depending on how long you want the ties to hang down.

Finishing:

Weave tie through the belt in the center row between sc’s and ch’s.

Have fun!

~Tater

My Squishy

“I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy.” ~Dory, Finding Nemo

When I found the pattern for this Jellyfish, I knew I had to make it! I did change the pattern just a tad, because I didn’t want my Jellyfish quite as big. I made him out of the Lion Brand, Homespun yarn, so he is very soft and cuddly :-)

Happy Thursday,
~Tater

Crocheted Mary Jane's

I know, slippers are the very last thing a person would want to make in this hot weather. But I've been looking for an easy pattern for something like this a very long time, so when I came across this one, I had to make them.

The pattern instructions were very easy to follow. I think that I might be able to tweak the pattern a bit, and make it into a sock pattern.

Have a good Saturday!

~Tater

Today...

...is World Wide Knit {or crochet} in Public Day!

 How are you celebrating?

Little Things

Hello, friends!

Here are some pictures of little things I've been crocheting lately :-)

An amigurumi mouse. His name is Emile.

Headbands, made using the double base chain stitch.

Sample of crocheted ric-rac.

Amigurumi Pi plushy. He looks blue in the picture, but he's actually purple.


Little motifs. The patterns for them were in the Reader's Digest, Complete Guide to Needlework book. The square is called "Hawaiian square", and is made using the pineapple stitch. The circle is called "Wagon wheel".

Happy Thursday!
~Tater

Сумка {Tote Bag}

Over a month ago, I decided to make a tote bag to keep all of my crochet projects in. I kept thinking about how delicious it would look, with the yarn and hooks poking out of the top :-)
I found a pattern for a square in the Reader's Digest, Complete Guide to Needlework that is a little like a granny square, yet a little different.

I made twelve of each color square. Don't they make a beautiful pile? :-)

After I made all the squares, I laid them out on the floor in the pattern they would be on when the tote was finished.

Joining the squares together... After that I attached the handles, then made the border.

I love poking my head inside, and looking at all the colors :-)

Happy Monday!
~Tater

Miss Megan

Hello, friends! :-)

A little over a week ago, I found a pattern online for an Amigurumi doll, and decided to try making it. After I finished her, I made another dress for her. Her name is Miss Megan.

Here are some pictures {and a pattern! :-) }























I made up the pattern for this dress. Fortunately, I wrote it down so I can share it with you!
Here it is:

Doll Skirt Pattern

Rnd. 1. Ch. enough to fit loosely around dolls wast.
Rnd. 2. ch. 3, dc in ea. ch around
Rnd. 3. ch. 1, in back loops only, 2sc in ea. dc around
Rnd. 4. ch. 3, in back loops only, dc in ea. sc around
Rnd. 5. ch 1, in back loops only, sc in ea. dc around
Rnd. 6. Rep. rnd. 4
Rnd. 7. ch. 1, in back loops only {sc in next st., 2sc in next st} around
Rnds. 8-11. Rep. rnds. 4 and 5 alternately
Rep. rnds 7-11 until skirt is desired length
Hem {optional}: ch. 3 , dc in next st., {2hdc in next st., 2 sc in next st., 2 sl. st. in next st., 2 sc in next st., 2hdc in next st., 2dc in next st.} around





































Have a good Saturday!
~Tater

Felted Hat

Hello, friends!
In this post I am going to do a tutorial on felting crochet projects. I have a book called The Colour Book of Felted Crochet, and in it is a pattern for a Fedora hat, which I had wanted to make for a long time. A little over a week ago, my mother, sister and I were at Michaels's, and I decided to go ahead and get the wool yarn I would need for my hat. I started crocheting it on Tuesday, and finished it yesterday. Today, I felted it {with Mom's help}. First, I tried felting a swatch I had made from the leftover yarn, and that came out pretty well. So anyway, here is step-by-step instructions, with pictures, on how to felt :-)

Felting Crocheted Projects

Notes and tips before starting:
1. Your project must be made out of wool yarn. 100% wool felts best, but anywhere from 50% up should work.
2. I noticed that taller crochet stitches {such as treble or double treble} do not felt as well. They do not blend together.
3. When crocheting the project you are going to felt, it is best to make the stitches a little on the loose side {don't forget to check that with your gauge!}. The looser the stitches, the more friction you will have when felting it, and your project will felt better.

You will need:
A basin deep enough to fill with water to cover your project
Rubber gloves
Mild dish soap or shampoo {I used baby shampoo on the swatch, and both baby shampoo and dish soap on the hat.}
A towel
Warm and cold water
Optional: blocking aids {pins, a bowl, etc.}
Optional: A hair dryer
Something to felt :-)
















Fill basin with enough hot water to cover your project. Make sure the water is very hot but not so hot that you can't keep you hands in it, like me :P The hotter the water, the faster your project will felt, and the colder the water, the slower it will felt. Add a small squirt of shampoo/dish soap.








Completely submerge project in the water, and agitate it evenly with your hands. To soft-felt it, only work it so that the stitches are slightly fused together, but still clearly visible. To hard-felt it, continue to agitate until the stitches are no longer visible, the fabric is thicker, and a little stiff. If the fabric does not seem to be felting, you can "shock" it, by putting it in cold water for a few minutes, and then returning it to the hot water.












When your project is felted to your satisfaction, take it out of the hot water and place it in cold water. Gently rinse it without agitating it anymore. The cold water will stop the felting.








After you have rinsed your project, lay it as flat as possible on a clean, dry towel. Roll the towel with the item in it as tight as possible, to squeeze out the excess water. Unroll it, and block it if you need to, as it may be a little out of shape from the felting.








At first, I tried using a bowl to block my hat, but then I used a hat form, and blocked only the brim. I also used a hair dryer to help it dry more quickly.

My hat turned out pretty well, except the brim is a little too wide and floppy for my liking, but I can easily change that.




Before - It was a little to big.








After






If you try felting using this tutorial, please comment and let me know how it turns out! :-) And feel free to ask any questions.

Happy Felting,
~Tater

Birthdays

I wanted to share these projects with you a earlier, but when I uploaded the pictures, I saw that none of them were any good. So I had to wait until we had some sunshiney days to take nicer pictures :-)

This is the roto-tiller pillow I made for Daddy for his birthday. He loves roto-tillers, I have no idea why!
Lindsey helped me make up the pattern for it.















This is the seal I made for Lindsey for her birthday.
I found this pattern online.





















Have a happy day, my friends!

~Tater

"Pretty Pollyanna"

I recently came across a website called Free Vintage Crochet with all kinds of cute patterns for many different items. I decided to try making the doll dress "Betsy from Pike".
I used the pattern for the skirt, and made up the rest on my own. I only wish I could remember what I did so I could share it with you :-(
















The sleeve.
















Sorry the focus is off on this one. This is the hem.





















The hat is my favourite!! I want one in my size :D






















Have a good week-end!

~Tater