Sari Yarn Giveaway

Yes, they give me an extra entry in the contest by posting this on my blog - but this is also BEAUTIFUL upcycled yarn and everyone should have a chance to enter!

http://www.allfreecrochet.com/sweeps/Recycled-Silk-Sari-Ribbon-Yarn-Giveaway#

More to come soon on all the mini-projects I've been doing recently.

Big Sister Afghan - The Pillow

So the afghan I recently finished was a belated birthday present for Jil. She knew she was getting it even before I started work on it, and she was patient enough to wait 3 extra months for the finished product. She was over last week and saw how close i was to finishing it, so she knew that she would be getting it today (or this week).


I love to suprise people though, so I used the leftover yarn from the blanket to make a pillow-cover to match. I bought a simple pillow from IKEA, made a granny square out of the same yarns as the blanket, and stitched the granny square to the front of the pillow. She seemed pretty excited.

Big Sister Ripple Afghan

For her birthday, my younger sister asked for a blanket that would help tie together the different items of furniture in her living room. She has a brown sofa, a burgundy wingback chair, and a light brown rug with hints of sage green and ivory. So I put something together for her to use on the back of her couch and bring all the colors into one place. Pity that I finished it 3 months after her birthday.

Big Sister Afghan(Ripple Afghan using Shell Stitches)

Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver Solids
1 skein  each of Navy, Mocha, Buff, Frosted Green, Brown, and  2 Skeins of Burgundy
(and I still have leftovers from all but the burgundy)
Hook: 6.5mm

Special Stitches:
Shell Stitch = 3 Double crochet into the same stitch/space (much like you would do when making a granny square)

Ch 24 for the first chevron and ch 23 For each of the next 6 chevrons, for a total of 162 ch sts to make a 7 chevron wide blanket  (add another set of 23 ch for another chevron if you like, it will make the blanket wider)

Row 1: Ch 3 + turn, shell st in th 4th ch from hook,*( skip 2ch, shell in next ch) 3 times. Ch2, Shell st in the same st as the last shell.  (Skip 2 ch, shell st in next ch) 3 more times. Skip 4 ch, shell into next ch. Repeat from * to * until the end of the row

Row 2: Ch3 + turn, *(shell st in between  each of the next 2 shell sts) 3 times. (shell st, ch2, shell st) in the ch 2 space that makes up the top of the chevron, then (shell st in between  each of the next 2 shell sts) 3 times*. Skip the next shell space, the one that makes up the bottom of the chevron. Repeat from *to* until the end of the row. Dc in the top of the ch that began the previous row.

Repeat Row 2 until your first color reaches a desired length, then switch colors.

Repeat Row 2 in your color pattern until the afghan is the desired length (mine was a grand total of 65 pattern rows)

Crochet Plant Hangers - Mini

So I have been settling in nicely at my new townhouse, though it seems like a never-ending process.  Though I have been desperately trying to finish Jil’s Birthday blanket (not to mention I need to get to work on Alicia’s Birthday Hat) I have been working on some crochet/sewing/painting projects to get my house in order.

This week’s accomplishment was my kitchen window garden. Special thanks to Vicky for bringing my bamboo plant all the way from MO. More thanks to Kevin & Alicia for the little potted flowers which have just begun to sprout cute little green leaves.

The ultimate goal is that the herbs that are growing will be enough that I can cook with them (mmmm…fresh basil) and that the garden itself will grow to consume the entire window. Making it so that I don’t have to close the blinds to keep my privacy. To achieve this, I decided that some of the smaller (lighter) plants should be hanging. Thus I created the following pattern.

Cute little planter hanger:Made with remnants of Red Heart Baby (recognize it?) as well as size 3.5mm and 5.0mm hooks

With 3.5mm hook, chain 6 and sl st to form a ring

Rnd 1: ch 1, 12 sc into ring

Rnd 2: ch1, sc into 1^st st, *ch 5, skip next st and sc into the following st* repeat from *to* 4 more times. (to make 5 ch5 loops) ch 3 and dc into the first st of the round to join. This leaves you at the top of a 6^th loop.

Rnd 3-5: *Ch 6, sc into next loop* repeat from * to * 4 more times. Ch 4 and trc into the first st of the round to join.

Rnd 6: *Ch 5, sc into next loop* repeat from * to * 5 more times.

Rnd 7: sc 6 times in each loop. sl st in first sc of round to join. Fasten off

(You can continue repeating the Rnd 3-5 pattern for a deeper pot. These things are pretty expandable, but if you need it to be wider at the base – work round 3 as written and then for rnds 4+ ch 7 or 8 instead of the ch 6, and with a ch 8, you’ll have to switch to a quad crochet to join the round. Rnd 6, subtract 1 ch from each loop, and Rnd 7 should have you putting 1 more sc into the loop than the number of ch sts you did in rnd 6.)

Hanging Chains: In one of the loops, join your yarn by tying on around rows 5 & 6 for more stability. Ch 25 or 35 depending on the height of your plant. Pull through a large loop and cut off your yarn. Repeat this in 2 more loops, making 3 evenly spaced hanging chains. Now get out your 5.0 hook and put the hook through all 3 large loops. Snag all 3 little tails of cut off yarn and tighten them up, then ch 1 using all 3 tails through all 3 loops. Pull through once more to fasten off.

Now, if this doesn’t hang at the right height for you, you’ll want to make a hanging loop. Ch 50-75 and feed the starting end through the hanging chains you just fastened off. Now sl st into the first ch to join. This makes a loop that is as long as 50% of your chain sts, and should securely loop through the hanging chains.

Also, check out this great shell pattern for a 6” pot that I found through ravelry:
http://www.jpfun.com/patterns/free/miscellaneous/f114008shellsplanthanger.shtml

Scarlett's Springtime Baby Set

My sorority sister, Jennifer, is pregnant with her first child, a little girl to be named Scarlett. This is the set I made for her baby shower.

For all Projects -
Hook: 3.5mm
Yarn: Red Heart Baby

Size: 3-6 Months

Dress - Click Here for Pattern Link
I didn't heavily modify this pattern, I just left off the little sleeves and did 1 row of hdc sts along the inside where it buttons. Somehow it ended up being a little wider along the circle than the pictures show, but thats just more room for little babies to crawl! The button closure was replaced with a velcro one, for ease of dressing. I liked the look of the buttons, so I sewed those on the front anyways. Flowers added are simple puff-stitch mollies - Click Here for Tutorial.

Ruffle-Butt Diaper Cover - Click Here for Pattern Link

This one was a heavily modified version of the 0-3 month pattern. Still a bit large for a newborn. Start with 1/4" elastic instead of 1/2". Work rounds 1-10 as written. Work round 11 such that the first and last 17 sts are worked in the back loop only. This leaves the front loop for where you can attach the ruffle later. This also establishes the back center. Work the pattern for row 10 twice more, then repeat row 11 (as rows 12-14). Repeat row 10 twice more (as rows 15-16). Bind off your yarn, and re-attach 12 sts to the right of center. Follow pattern as written for row 14 (first row of "crotch) but in back loops only. Follow pattern as written for remainder of patten, through row 33.

Ruffle Butt: Attach yarn at the end of one of the front loop lines left at rows 11, 14, and 17. Ch 1 + 2sc in first st and 2sc in each loop across. Ch 1 and turn. (sc + ch1) twice into each st across. Switch colors. With new color, ch1 and sc in each st across. If the ends of your ruffle won't stay put, tack them down with a small piece of scrap yarn. Repeat on each of the remaining front loop lines.

Booties - Click Here for Pattern Link
Heavily modified this design. Work rounds 1-2 as written. Rounds 3-4 simple dc in each st around instead of increasing by 1st. Skip to instructions for row 6 leaving a 2-3 st gap for the foot. Stop at row 8 and sl st the heel shut. I completely changed the cuff, so see my pattern notes below.

Cuff: attach yarn at the heel. Sc in each st around in same color as foot. sl st through the first st of the round, switching to second color. 3dc in each st around with second color to create the ruffle cuff.

UPDATE: Scarlett looks adorable in her springtime set! (Too bad its fall!)