Thick and Quick Baby Blanket

So my one of my cousins is due with a baby girl, and had her shower this past weekend. She said her nursery theme was pink and brown, and I sent her this blanket for it :)

This is the second time I have used this pattern, and I adore it, especially when worked with a super-bulky or a double-strand of yarn.

Pattern: Stashaholic's Brain Dead Afghan
Yarn: Loops & Threads Impeccable in Neopolitan (2 of their "Big" Skeins, held 2 strands together as one)
Hook: 10.0mm
Pattern Notes: Made my starting Chain of 96 sts. Worked until I started to run low on yarn, then added the tassels on the ends of the zig-zags. The tassels were a suggestion from Grandma, and I honestly think that they are so cute. They really make this blanket unique!

PS: My Hubby got me a new camera for Christmas! Its a Nikon DSLR and I am so happy with the beautiful pictures of my projects!

Hexa-Puff Baby "Quilt"

A long time ago at our local craft circle, I was introduced to the Apiary Puff and the concept of a crochet/knit "quilt" of sorts, using stuffed crochet tiles in a larger blanket design. I fell in love immediately, but I knew it would be quite the endeavor to make a whole project out of them.

Well, when Lydia (a fellow crochetter) found out she was expecting, I knew I couldn't do anything less! I changed the pattern, because I was trying to find a simpler way of making, stuffing, and then sewing together the puffs. Here is what I came up with!

Yarns: Pound of Love (in Pastel Yellow), Red Heart Super Saver (in Coral), I Love This Yarn (in Hot Rose).
Hook(s): 5mm for Pound of Love, 4mm for Red Heart, and 3.5mm for I Love This Yarn
Gauge: Overall gauge is unimportant, however, you'll want all of your hex pieces to be the same size in the end, so with every different yarn you use, test the gauge with different hooks until you match the gauge of your existing hex pieces. I had to use a different hook for each yarn to get the sizes to match!
Additional Supplies:
Stuffing (I buy $1 GOSA Pillows from Ikea and one pillow was enough stuffing for this project)
Yarn Needle
Yarn Scraps


Hexa-Puff Pattern

Back Hex:
Begin with a Magic Ring
Into the Magic Ring: Ch 3, dc, ch1, *2dc, ch1* Repeat from * to * 4 additional times. Tighten your magic ring. Sl st to top of the ch 3 to join.
Round 2: Ch 3, dc in next st, *(dc, ch 1, dc) into the ch 1 space, dc in next 2 sts* Repeat from * to * 4 more times, end with (dc, ch 1, dc) into the remaining ch 1 space. Sl st to top of the ch 3 to join.
Round 3: Ch 3, dc in next 2 sts, *(dc, ch 1, dc) into the ch 1 space, dc in next 4 sts* Repeat from * to * 4 more times, (dc, ch 1, dc) into the remaining ch 1 space and dc into the next st (right before the ch 3 that started the round). Sl st to top of the ch 3 to join.
Round 4: Ch 3, dc in next 3 sts, *(dc, ch 1, dc) into the ch 1 space, dc in next 6 sts* Repeat from * to * 4 more times, (dc, ch 1, dc) into the remaining ch 1 space and dc into the next 2 sts (right before the ch 3 that started the round). Sl st to top of the ch 3 to join. Fasten Off.

Front Hex:
Same as Back Hex for Rounds 1-4. Do NOT fasten off at the end of Round 4.
Round 5: Begin by matching up a completed back hex to your almost-complete front hex, wrong sides together. Ch 1, and sc through BOTH the back and front hex to join the two pieces together. Sc into each st and 2sc into each corner ch 1 space until you're almost all the way around. Stuff a bit of stuffing into the hex before finishing. Sl st to the top of the first sc to join. Fasten off.

Half Hex:
Same as Back Hex for Rounds 1-4. Do NOT fasten off at the end of Round 4.
Fold the hex in half so that the wrong sides are inside. Ch 1 and sc through both halves of the piece, around, placing 2sc in each corner st. Add 3-4 sc stitches along the corners closest to the fold, and sc along the fold as well (this will make edging much easier). Make sure to STUFF your half-hex before you finish sc'ing all the way around.



When you've made all of your hex pieces, arrange them how you would like them and pin in place. Sew them together using a yarn needle and coordinating yarn. Be careful to secure them thoroughly at the corners.

My blanket used 50 Hex Pieces (9 Rose, 9 Coral, and 32 Yellow) and 8 Half-Hex Pieces (6 yellow, 1 rose, 1 coral) and I used scraps of the Rose yarn to add a simple single-crochet border. Final measurements were 24" wide by 30" long.


I LOVE the look of this project, even though it was one of the most involved project's I've ever done. I'd like to make it again using yellow for ALL the hex pieces, and a honey-colored yarn for the joining round (and sewing). I think that it would look like a honeycomb and it would be adorable if paired with an amigurumi bumble bee!



My Grandma also makes Hexagon Garden Quilts similar to this one, and I think that would be a neat arrangement as well!

Lydia Showing off the Hexa-Puff Quilt!

Pretty Little Sunhat

So, I recently did a few projects with lace, and became completely obsessed with it. I love the way it looks when I finish a piece, like something you would easily find with a high price tag at a boutique. No, I still haven't started that veil, and yes, the projects take about 10 times longer than their worsted weight counterparts. That said, I love the fact that a ball of crochet thread (along with the accompanying project) fits in my everyday purse instead of a separate yarn bag. That said, I managed to lose the 1.5mm crochet hook frequently. So I now carry a hook case with me as well, instead of just tucking it into the skein.

Anyways, this beautiful little Sunhat Pattern is one that I found through Ravelry. It was very accurate as far as sizing went. I used a larger hook, so I omitted one round of the center hat circle. It is sized for 1.5-3 year olds, but since it was a gift for Scarlett's first birthday I wanted to keep as close to that sizing as possible.

Yarn: Aunt Lydia's Classic Cotton Crochet  Thread (size 10) in Orchid Pink
Hook: 1.5mm metal lace hook
Pattern Link: Sunhat PDF
Modifications: I omitted one row of the center circle, and I don't recall which one. I also finished it off early, since I made the shell pattern rows longer than required. I don't think I deliberately planned any of that, I think my fingers were killing me and I just gave up. I worked on it for about 4 hours straight while on a flight layover in Atlanta. Besided, the little flowers on the edge look so cute the way they are!

The Verdict: I love it! Can't wait for Jennifer to get some nice pix of Scarlett wearing it!

And here it is!!! So CUTE!!!

Heirloom Lace Sampler Bracelet

See this post for the story behind the sampler.

If you’re looking to make this lovely cuff bracelet, please be aware that this is NOT A BEGINNER PROJECT. I’m assuming that you’re already familiar with all basic crochet stitches and skills, and that you have at least some experience making lace. I wrote the pattern AFTER finishing the piece, so if you need to fudge the last stitch or two in a row, don’t be surprised.

Thread: Aunt Lydia’s Crochet Cotton Size 10 in Ivory
Hook: 1.5mm metal lace hook
Notions: 2 small buttons, sewing needle, and matching ivory sewing thread

Begin with a multiple of 8 +1, you want the base chain to be enough to reach around your wrist.

Row 1: Sc in 2^nd ch from hook and in each st across. Turn

Row 2: Ch 6, *skip 3 sts, dc2tog in next st, ch 3 and skip 3 sts, dc in next st, ch 3* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn

Row 3: Ch5, *in the top of the dc2tog from prev row (dc2tog, ch 3, dc2tog), then ch 2 and dc in the top of the dc from the prev row, ch2* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 4: Ch 1, sc in same st *(ch1 + dc) four times into the ch 3 space between the two dc2tog sts (shell made) in the previous row. ch 1 and sc in the top of the next dc from prev row*  Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 5. Ch 5, *in the center ch1 space of the shell made in the prev row (dc, ch1, dc, ch1, dc), ch 2, dc in the sc of the prev row, ch 2* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 6: Ch 3, *dc in the first dc of the shell, ch 1, dc in the first ch 1 sp of the shell, ch 1, dc in the 2^nd dc of the shell, ch 1, dc in the 2^nd ch 1 sp of the shell, ch 1, dc in the 3^rd dc of the shell, ch 1, dc2tog over the next ch2 spaces, ch1* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 7: Ch 1, sc in each of the next dc, ch, dc, and ch sts. *In the dc that is the top of the shell (sc, ch3, sc) to make a picot. Sc in each of the next ch, dc, and ch sts. Sc2tog over the next 2 plain dc sts, skipping over the ch, dc2tog, and ch sts. Sc in each of the next ch, dc, and ch sts.* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 8: ch 4, dc in same st. *ch 7. In picot st from prev row (dc, ch1, dc, ch1, dc)* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 9: ch1, sc in same st. *(4dc, ch1, 4dc) all in next ch 7 sp. Sc in each ch 1 space between the dc’s in the picot* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 10: ch 5, *In ch 1 sp at top of loop (puff st, ch 2, puff st), ch 3, dc2tog over the sc’s from prev row, ch 3* Repeat from * to * until the end of the row. Turn.

Row 11: Ch 1, *4sc in each ch 3 sp, and (2sc, ch3, 2sc) into eac ch2 sp between puff sts.

Finishing: turn your work 90 degrees and working back towards Row 1, add a row of sc along the edge of your lace. You may add as many rows as needed on each edge in order to make room to sew on buttons and create button holes.

To make button holes: Hold your button up to the work and measure how many sc’s wide your buttons are, and call this number W. Determine how you will space your buttons. After an initial row or more of sc sts on the edge of your lace, sc in each st across, stopping where you want the button, and ch W sts. Skip an equal number of sts, and continue to sc across. You’ll need to add an additional row of sc’s on top of your button hole row. For this row, sc in each sc, and W+1 sc’s in each ch sp. Fasten off.

I like to add a dot of fray-check onto any place where the thread is knotted or tied in, just to make sure it doesn’t get away, and then I weave in my ends.

BLOCK AND STARCH your lace. Did I mention that you should block and starch this??

You could make this longer and wear it as a choker, and I think it would be a lovely gift for a bride-to-be!

Cotton Bath Loofa

I found this Bath Poof pattern on Ravelry but never thought I would end up making it. Turns out, I got a ton of 100% cotton Sugar n Cream yarn on sale Black Friday (forever ago) and I was going to make wash cloths out of it. Instead, I tried this out for my friend Caroline's birthday gift. Perfect. These little guys are great in the shower, plus they can go in the washing machine if they get gross. I had a few people tell me that it sounded strange to them, to make a loofa out of cotton, and I have seen them made out of tulle as an alternative, but I was very happy with the way they turned out!