Tag: accessories

Freestyle, no pattern, Crochet Lace Scarves… even in the summer heat…

no pattern scarvesOver the holiday break I had little inclination to crochet… here in Australia, this year’s summer has been frightfully hot & the thought of handling yarn has been less than inspiring… nevertheless, while sitting in front of the telly with the fan blasting, sucking on fruity ice-blocks & doing my best to stay as cool as possible, my hands, which have minds of their own, thought differently… ‘idle hands, idle minds’ & all that…

Some months back I wrote a post about ‘Freestyle Crochet made easy’… work a long length of chain, no need to count, & work a different pattern for each row, improvising with plain stitches at the ends where the pattern doesn’t quite fit…

It’s been far too hot to have volumes of crochet fabric sitting on my lap so I decided I could do just the same but this time working short rows back & forth to create a scarf or two… I chose to work in cotton & cotton blends but any yarn you like would be fine.

I’d forgotten how liberating this method is… not a lot of thought needs to go into what pattern to work on which particular row, just do what you like, whatever looks pleasing… perhaps call on those patterns you’ve learnt at some stage or rummage through your pattern books for stitches you’ve never tried…

My hands were right… there’s no need to be idle just find a way to keep creating with the least amount of discomfort…

For this pink scarf I used Seta, Silken Style (Wendy), 100 grams (2 balls), 48% viscose, 40% cotton, 9% silk, 3% nylon

pink cotton silk blend

For this white scarf I used Moda Vera (Nerine), 68 grams (a ball & a bit), 100% cotton

white 100% cotton

Loving those Rainbow Yarns…

rainbow yarnThose of you who are familiar with my work will know how much I love working with colour; experimenting with unusual colour palettes, taking risks with different combinations & always testing the boundaries of what’s considered the norm in regard to ‘what goes with what.’ All those old sayings like, ‘blue & green should never seen’ ‘contrasts must never sit side by side’ are just that, old sayings, & I take little notice of them… hence I’m always on the lookout for yarns that incorporate unusual & interesting colour combinations.

Recently there’s been a trend for gorgeous variegated yarns with striking & long colour changes, of which Noro & Mini Mochi, to name a couple, being particular favourites of mine. So, imagine my delight when I found ‘California’ by Cleackheaton  (100% wool) at my local yarn store… I purchased some balls right away but must admit, after initially making some headbands & a beanie a while back, a couple of which sold quickly, I allowed them to sit idle in my stash for some time until I remembered I still had some left over somewhere.

I had in mind to make a bag… & perhaps I was feeling a little lazy that day… Aussie summers have a habit of doing that… but instead of going through my stash looking for colour combos, I asked myself if working with just the ‘California’ would work & decided to give it a  try … the colours are rich & bright just like our Aussie summers… Oh, but the black is extra… here’s the result & there was enough to make another headband… not bad for working with just one yarn type eh?…

rainbow-bag2rainbow-crayon2

‘Fern’ & ‘Bouvardia’ by Moda Vera (both wool, acrylic blends) are also great finds but I still need to think about those & what I’d like to do with them.

That’s a mighty giant crochet hook, but what to do with it?

giant hook2I’ve had this giant, wooden crochet hook for the longest time, I may have found it in an OP shop or perhaps someone gave it to me… I simply can’t remember… in any case, it’s been sitting idle in my hook collection for many years with no idea what size it could be (though compared to a 6.50 mm (US K), it’s mighty big), or what it could be used for…

I’m presuming that some clever person hand-carved it & lovingly sanded it down to feel as smooth as silk… nevertheless, I’ve always found it awkward to work with &, after a few of feeble attempts, just abandoned it…giant hook1

That is, until a couple of months ago when I wanted to crochet some really woolly, chunky scarves, you know the kind that you can wrap around & around yourself, thick & lush to keep out the frostiest cold winds… &, suddenly, that mighty giant hook might just be the ticket… I started with 2 strands of yarn… No, not chunky enough… 3 strands, then 4 but finally settled on 5 strands of what I hope are complimentary colours. It wasn’t nearly as awkward as I remembered & the scarves worked up really fast. I think I got a bit carried away too, hence their length… the yellow/brown one being approx 272 cm (107”) & the green one approx 317.50 cm (125”).

So that’s a couple of scarves… I’m sure there are many more items that could be created with this mighty hook… I just haven’t thought of any yet… Any ideas? Or perhaps you have your own giant hook story… we’d all love to hear them…

green chunkyDSCF9666DSCF9674DSCF9671

Crochet Felt Hat Beanie Winter Collection

Hello everyone, allow me to introduce  my new winter hat beanie collection… a combination of crochet, felted crochet & wet felting… all made from 100% wool, with assorted cotton & acrylic yarns, glass & wooden bead embellishments.

The collection came about while I was incapacitated some weeks back with a back injury & given strict instructions to take it easy… hmmm… Well, that’s always easier said than done….

So, what to do? I couldn’t just sit around feeling sorry for myself…. a poke around in my stash, I found a whole bag full of feltable yarns purchased some time ago &, as usually happens, completely forgotten about… so, with a collection of favourite DVD’s, I set to work crocheting the hat beanie crowns that I later felted in the washing machine (no strain, no pain)…& they came up a treat… from there I slowly added the crochet bands & embellishments… time well spent, time not wasted & Yes… I did take it easy…. Enjoy!

Over the coming days  these hat beanies will be available for sale on Etsy.

100 Beanie Drive… can you help?

Jess Van Den of Epheriell Designs has put out a call to all her crafty friends for help in her 100 Beanie Charity Drive

Jess’s goal is: to gather together 100 Beanies during July that I can donate to that box in the Day Oncology Unit. In fact – I’d love to have to buy them a bigger box to fit everything I bring in!! And you know what? Why not shoot for 100 scarves and 100 pairs of mittens, too?
 I’d love it if you could help me give cancer patients warm heads and warm hearts this winter.

Here’s the information if you would like to help with this worthy project – you will find some crochet & knit patterns to help you get started & guidelines for materials to use. Ravelry fans can join in here too.

The call is for boy colours as, apparently, men & boys are the most in need but all crochet or knitted beanies, scarves & mittens will be most appreciated – so why not give it a go….

These are a couple I whipped up in no time at all & will be in the post tomorrow…