Beatrice Scarf

The Craft Group got a donation of some fingering or sock weight yarn that is 80% Acrylic and 20% Alpaca.  It is a funky shade of brown so I needed to find something interesting (stitchwise) to make with it.  While trolling around sites for new patterns I saw this pattern on the Red Heart site.

http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/beatrice-wrap

I have never used the Solomon's Knot stitch before, and I thought this yarn would be just right for the a scarf and it was  :-).  I used about 89 gr of the 100 gr skein.

I have 2 more skeins of this yarn and I think I will make them up with this same pattern.  Two ladies have already expressed interest in buying them and another has put in her order for one in white.  

Here are a couple of other views of the completed scarf.

Close up

71" x 8"

This one is with a flash.

I am thinking I may use this neat hand dyed Merino sock weight yarn in one for myself.

Or maybe that long color changing yarn from Lion Brand - Amazing.  We'll have to see how I feel about this pattern after making at least 3 more... lol.

Rose Fillet Afghan

A Facebook group I am in, is having their 1 year anniversary this month and they have challenged the members to make something new for the anniversary.  They had a mystery CAL in the middle of February that made a baby blanket.  I wasn't that interested in the baby blanket but liked the flower motif.  When the challenge came along I thought back to that flower....  hmmmm.  Well I wandered down my own bunny trail thinking about that flower.  I wanted something light and airy and I have never done any fillet work before and the color I picked for the flower was a mauve pink, so.... I googled rose fillet charts   :-)  This chart really jumped at me.

This chart can be found at this site:  http://crochet.about.com/library/blfilet1rose.htm

I then started playing with the flower from the MCAL and made it into a fillet-like square.  This is how the whole thing turned out  :-)



I had a lot of fun with the patterns and textures.  Now what to do next???

Floral Trellis Scarf

This stitch pattern was discussed in the crochet group I belong to on Facebook.  I had never seen it before and was intrigued by the look of it.  I am playing around with the stitch for a shawl for myself but that is still a WIP. 
In the mean time the ladies in my church craft group had asked me to make a scarf to go with some donated gloves.  The Floral Trellis stitch worked up quick and easy.  Since the gloves are cream I wanted to add the cream to the edges of the flowers to finish it off.  Then of course I had to put a flower and trim onto the glove too.  :-)

I used Baby weight yarn and a "E" hook.  The scarf is 3 3/4"wide by 66"long.

I think I may just have to make one for myself too.  :-)



Can't stop smiling :-)

I want to announce there is a new hooker in our midst.  My daughter has officially become hooked.  :-)

When Erika was 8 or 10 she wanted to make an afghan because she always saw me making them.  She/we picked out a pattern and got the yarn and started making squares.  Well.... I taught her each part of the square and made her make some of the parts but you all know I did the majority of it...lol.  She would show it to her friends and say she made it, I would roll my eyes and say "yes she did"   :-)

Last year she said she would like to start crocheting again and could I help her relearn it?  My response... SURE!  I sent her some yarn and we found and easy pattern.  She chose the Jacob's Ladder pattern.  I had some donated yarn that would make a smallish afghan that I could use too.  So, over Skype we would sit and crochet together.  I had her measure her test swatch for gauge and I'm not quite sure what she measured but she agreed that it fit the gauge.  Well.... when she came home for a visit in November she brought the afghan.  It looked great but, she is a super tight crocheter!!!  Her 5 rows of Dc equals 2 1/2"!!!  I just shook my head and added more yarn to the box to be mailed to her home.

So here is her finished afghan.... TA DA !!!

She hasn't measured it but I would guess it is about 50" x 72".

She liked the edge of the Kitten's in a Row scarf so I explained how to do that edging, even the reverse single crochet stitch for the outside edge.  She caught on to the reverse sc so quickly it was awesome!  Once she got the hang of working backwards she zipped around the afghan.  :-)

Here is a close up of the edging.

She was thinking it took her so long to finish the afghan, starting in October 2011 and finishing February 2012 is not bad!  She also made in the same time frame: Secret Pal gifts, Christmas gifts, new Secret Pal gift, and Valentine gifts for Hubby. 

I would definitely say she is hooked.  Now she is looking for some yarn for an afghan for her Father-In-Law.

Kittens in a Row Scarf

I needed to make a gift for a friend who likes cats.  I also had some of the yarn left over from the Blue and White afghan.  I then remembered I had always wanted to try out this pattern...  Voile!  a scarf!  :-)

Beverly said it was okay to post this scarf pattern here.
The Original pattern for afghan can be found here.
http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/kitsinrow.html

A PDF of this pattern can be found at my Ravelry store. Kittens in a Row Scarf

Skill Level – Easy to Intermediate

Size: 6” w x 51” l

Materials:
Three colors of WW yarn.

• Color A – 3 oz
• Color B – 2 oz
• Color C – 2 oz
• “H” Crochet hook or size that will fit gage.
• Steel Tapestry Needle

I used yarn from my stash:

  Simply Soft/Navy (A), ILTY/Medium Blue (B), ILTY/Soft Blue (C). 

I did not weigh my yarn before I started making this scarf so the above weights are just an estimate.

Gage: 7 dc = 2” 3 rows = 1 ½ “

Special Stitches:

Shell: [2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc] all in the next ch-1 sp.

Simple Puff: [YO, insert hook in space between shells 2 rows below, YO, draw up a long loop to the height of the working row] 2 times, (you will have 5 loops on your hook) YO, draw thru 4 loops, YO, draw thru 2 loops.

Carry Yarn Forward: This pattern requires 3 colors of yarn because you will not need to cut your yarn at the color changes. To Carry Yarn Forward you hook the loose yarn into stitch you are making at the end of the row. In this pattern the last stitch of each row will be a Dc into the top of the Beg Ch 3. How you do this is:
Insert hook into beg ch 3, go under the carry forward yarn, YO with working yarn, complete the dc with the carry forward yarn above the working yarn, when dc is finished flip the carry forward yarn over the working yarn and turn your work for the next row.
On the row where you will be changing colors, start the last dc the same way by going under the carry forward yarn (next color to be used), YO with working yarn, draw thru beg ch 3, YO, draw thru 2 loops, drop working yarn, pick up the carry forward yarn from under the old working yarn, draw thru 2 loops, turn your work for the next row and continue using the new color.

Directions:

With Color A, ch 22 loosely.  This pattern is based on multiples of 5 plus 2.
Row 1: Dc in 4th ch from hook, sk 2, *2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc, sk 3; repeat from * 2 more times, last repeat sk only 2, dc 2.
Row 2: Turn, ch 3, dc 1, Shell in next 3 ch-1 spaces, sk 2, dc 1, dc in beg ch 3, drop Color A and change to Color B. Do not cut Color A.
Row 3: Turn, ch 3, dc 1, *Simple Puff, Shell in next ch-1 sp; repeat from * 2 more times, Simple Puff, dc 1, dc in beg ch 3.
Row 4: Turn, ch 3, dc 1, * Shell in ch-1 sp; repeat from * 2 more times, sk 2 and sk Simple Puff, dc 1, dc in beg ch 3.
Row 5: Repeat Row 4, at end of row change to Color C.
Rows 6 – 8: Repeat Rows 3 thru 5 changing to Color A at the end of Row 8.
Work in pattern (Rows 3 thru 5) changing colors in order of A, B, C, until piece is 48” long. (approx 10 color sets)

Repeat Row 3 one more time with Color A.

Last Row: Turn, ch 1, sc in same st, sc 1, ch 2, 2 sc in ch-1 sp, [ch 3, 2 sc in ch-1 sp] 2 times, ch 2, sk 3, sc 1, sc in beg ch 3.

Finish Off Colors B and C, do not cut Color A.

Edging:
Row 1: Ch 1, * turn work 90° to work down the side edge, 2 sc around the side of dc or ch 3, [ch 1, 2 sc around side of dc or ch 3] repeat [ ] along side, 3 sc in corner, turn work 90°, sc 18, 3 sc in corner; repeat from *, sl st join to beg sc. FO Color A.
Row 2: With Color B, sc join on bottom edge 5 st from corner, sc 1 in each sc, Corner: (the center sc of the 3 in the corner from Row 1) [sc 1, ch 2, sc 1] all in same st, sc 1, [ch 2, sk 2, sc 1 in ch-1 sp] repeat [ ] along side, ch 2, sk 2, sc 1, Corner, sc 20, Corner, repeat [ ] along side, Corner, sc 3, sl st join to beg sc. FO Color B.
Row 3: With Color C, sc join on the bottom edge opposite from where you joined Row 2, * rev sc in each sc, 2 rev sc in corner ch-2 sp, rev sc 1, [rev sc 1, rev sc in ch-1 sp] repeat [ ] along side, rev sc 2, 2 rev sc in corner ch-2 sp; repeat from * once, rev sc to beginning, sl st join. FO Color C.

Weave in ends... Enjoy!

Terminology
ch = Chain stitch
dc = Double Crochet
sc = Single Crochet
rev sc = Reverse Single Crochet
sk = Skip stitch
sp = Space
st(s) = Stitch(es)
FO = Finish Off

This pattern has not been tested so if you find any errors please ping me a note, thank you  :-)

Timeless Blue and White afghan

Completed this afghan last week.  I have to say this is one of my very favorites.  The pattern was simple but not to boring when you have to make 63 squares.  I have always loved the old Blue and White china and this beauty picks up all that old feeling.  :-)

I used "I Love This Yarn" so it has a wonderful soft hand to it.  The pattern was from Leisure Arts Presents "Afghans for All Seasons"  published in 1993.  I hear that there are more volumes but this one doesn't have any notation of a volume number so it maybe the first they did.

This is a view of the afghan flat out on my work table.

Close up of the corner details



I made this afghan for my church craft group.  We have a Craft Fair every year to sell the crafts we make over the year.  I don't know if this will be the raffle item or a silent auction item.  If it is the raffle item I may have to buy some tickets to see if I can win this one back... lol

New Year Project

Well it's a new year and one of my resolutions is to blog more consistently.  I have some pictures of my end of year projects but will put them in another post.  This post will be about the afghan I am making for the Craft Fair this year.  It is called "Timeless Blue and White" from the Leisure Arts book, Afghans for All Seasons.

This is a copy of the picture in the book 

I haven't totally finished it yet but I thought I would give you some pictures of the in progress squares.

The First Colorway (17 squares)

 

 

This is how the centers for the next 46 squares looked before sizing and hiding tails.

The centers after sizing and hiding tails.

 
 
 

The second colorway thru Row 4.

 

 

 

Second Colorway (18 squares)

 

 

 

First square of the Third Colorway, 27 more to go  :-).



 

So that is where I am at, at the moment.  Can't wait to get to the assembling stage, all the squares will be crocheted together not sewn. 

 

Be back soon with more progress  :-)