Showing posts with label 30 day crochet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 30 day crochet. Show all posts

Thursday, June 30, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Thirty


Wow!! Day Thirty!! 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I cannot believe how quickly we have reached the end of the month! Taking on thirty days of different projects seemed, at times, like a big commitment. Over all, I have to say that it was really good for me. I have enjoyed every step of the way. I am also pleased when I look back on the variety of things we've made. It has truly been an exciting month for me. :)


Let's talk today...
I had such fun making the hot cocoa mug coasters, that I thought I'd look along the coaster line again. Giraffe and I saw these and got a huge kick out of them! :) We simply had to make them!

These are called "Peeking Dog/Cat Butt Coasters":




LOL!! Isn't that hysterical? haha

Giraffe worked up the cat and I worked up the dog. 

They are so cute that I think I would like a set in neon colors! :)

These were fun and very easy to make. You can probably tell that we need to buy a blocking board at some point. You can also see that we chose to leave off the 'pink spot'. ;) That said, I still love how they came out! :)
These were, as always, worked in 100% cotton yarn. 

Crochet Along!

Find the free dog coaster pattern below:
Peeking Dog Butt Coaster


Find the free cat coaster pattern below:
Peeking Cat Butt Coaster

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I also want to take a minute to recap everything we've made this month:

Day 1 - Apple

Day 2 - Chickens

Day 3 - Dress

Day 4 - Boat and Captain's/Ship Wheel
  
Day 5 - Ladybug

Dress Re-Do

Day 7 - Freestyle Lighthouse

Day 8 - Fish

Day 9 - Mini Turtle

Day 10 - Starfish

Day 11 - Watermelon Slice

Day 12 - Freestyle Horse

Day 13 - Pear

Day 14 - Sunshine

Day 15 - Pencil

Day 16 - Pinwheel/Flower

Day 17 - Flip Flop

Day 18 - Ice Cream/Cone

Day 19 - Cupcake

Day 20 - Strawberry

Day 21 - Cherry Pie

Day 22 - Freestyle Barn 
(The red yarn has not arrived yet... I will finish this, I promise!)

Day 23 - Turtles

Day 24 - Hot Cocoa Mugs

Day 25 - Rose Pinwheel
(Still disappointed that you cannot see the pinwheel pattern in pics. You can in person.)

Day 26 - DONUT!!!! :D :D :D 

Day 27 - Bavarian Squares

Day 28 - Towel Holders

Day 29 - Tunisian Basket of Strawberries

There you have it! Thirty days of crochet that produced over thirty items of various sizes and shapes. My crochet skills still need fine-tuning, but oh, the joy of crocheting! :) It has been my pleasure to work on so many project. I hope you've enjoyed seeing all of the different things. I also hope you've found a new favorite pattern or two somewhere in the mix. :)

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Nine


Good Morning!

Today we are working on another dishcloth. I've had my eye on this strawberry basket design all month. However, it is a Tunisian crochet... and I have never done that before in my life! lol This one is a little daunting, but I will be sure to add the picture once I am done working it up. :) I just wanted to give you a head start in case you really do happen to crochet along! ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Okay, so you can see that mine came out all wobbly and lumpy! Can we just say that is to be expected when learning a new stitch? ;) ;) 

You can also probably tell that I was very relaxed/loose working the basket and then really cramped up and got tight worrying my way through the strawberries. haha This one definitely was an investment of time, but I would be interested in doing it again in the future. I used 100% cotton and a 5.5 gauge Tunisian crochet hook. I will definitely try this pattern again in the future. I will also very likely try to straight-up crochet this pattern using the basket weave stitch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crochet Along!
Find the free pattern and four helpful videos at the link below: 

Monday, June 27, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Seven


Good Afternoon!

Today is the Bavarian Square...


This one is not quite finished yet, but you can see the idea. I'm keeping the square small enough to be used as a dishcloth. Farm Girl really likes this color mix.

Mikey - from The Crochet Crowd - is right when he says that the squares are made out of circles. 
He talks about that being a difficult concept to get, but it really isn't. Just pay close attention and pause the video so you can keep running it as you go. I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

Crochet Along!
Find the free pattern/video in the link below:
How to Crochet a Bavarian Square


Sunday, June 26, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Six


Good Afternoon!

I am excited about today's project, just because it is so TINY! 
It is also a whole lot of fun! Can you say 'donut'?!?!

DONUT!!
This little guy is just over 2" around. Ain't he sweet?

Usually, I quite hate crocheting in the amigurumi style. Don't get me wrong, I love the end product! I just have very large fingers, so a hook as small as a 3.5mm (as used in this pattern) makes me feel as though I am Gulliver in the land of the Lilliputions. Because of that, I find amigurumi to be quite tedious. 

That said, I am so pleased with this little donut that I might have to make more in the future! I think he'd make a great fridge magnet. Koala has dibs on this one, though. He's found his way to her play kitchen. The topping was supposed to be worked up in yarn, but I thought beads might make cute candy sprinkles. I'm please with the result. :) The pattern is available at Hello Yellow.

Crochet Along!
Follow the link below to the free pattern:



Saturday, June 25, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Five


Good Afternoon!
Today we have a rose swirl crochet dishcloth.


I just need to express how disappointed I am with my own cloth, given how pretty the actual design is. If you are holding it in your hand, you can see the pattern. I got all patriotic and decided to use this variegated Red White & Blue yarn from Lily Sugar 'N Cream (since I am still waiting for my shipment of new yarn - including red - to show up). 

Follow the link below and I'm sure you will fall in love with the one you see there. It is really pretty! Lesson learned... next time I do this, I'll make it in a lighter - solid - color. I even tried to put yellow paper under it to help the holes show through so you can see the pattern. No such luck. :/ Even so, this is a very easy work-up. It would be quite easy for anyone - beginners included. 

Crochet Along!
Find the free pattern in the link below:



Friday, June 24, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Four


Good Afternoon!

Today we are really, really, super busy. I need to do a quick one. I'm running late again, so here is a direct link to the pattern we're doing.

We're making coasters shaped like mugs of hot cocoa with whipped cream on top! Fun! I can't wait to get started!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I GOT DONE!!! :) lol 



Okay, so maybe you did not want me to yell right into your eyes like that. ;) :)
It is only because I took longer to do them than I intended to. I tend to crochet until I am finished, which - when you are diabetic - is not a good idea. What that comes down to is me crocheting until my brain seizes up and I'm moving slowly and losing all concentration, etc, as my body gets more and more 'tired'. Blood sugar that is falling feels like being so exhausted you're about to pass out... aaaand sometimes I do. So, I have to watch that! I need to take breaks, eat when it is time, and things would go faster. lol

ANYWAY, all of that useless personal info to explain my extra-tardiness! lol I have to say that I flat-out LOVED making these! (Which is why you see four and not one. That, and there has to be a set! ;) 

I cannot understate the fun, fun, FUN I had! lol I was blaring music and singing to it at the top of my lungs all the way up until I hit the third whipped topping. (I made cups first and then topped them all.) That is when Farm Girl called and I finished the topping in her ear. ;)

SO, these are a gift (?) for my baby sister. Let's call her Princess. :D :D :D
She loves coffee, loves mugs, loves hot cocoa, and loves neon! So yup, these scream her name at me! hehe Truth be told, I may have to work up some others. They really are that fun. (Did I mention that already?)

Follow the link and follow the directions. Super simple!

Crochet Along! :)
Follow the link below for the free pattern:


Continue to Day Twenty-Five

Thursday, June 23, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Nineteen


Good Morning!

Following yesterday's post (and the comment I made about not liking the ice cream portion), I thought I would work up the cupcake dishcloth by Twinkie Chan. I so much prefer her cupcake topping, and think it would make a cute ice cream cone topper if you mix today's pattern with yesterday's. 


Anyway, I worked it up following the free pattern on the youtube video. It is really easy, and quite fun to make. Again, this is a pattern that would need blocked. I don't have the stuff for that yet. Even so, I think it is cute. I believe Farm Girl will love it! :) I used her favorite colors. 

As always 100% cotton and my Granny (H) hook. :) 

Crochet Along!

Follow the link below to make this free pattern:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Three


Good Afternoon!
I should have posted this earlier this morning, but I was distracted. Some major storms went through our state (and many others) last night. Suffice to say, I did not get sleep. That lead to me procrastinating today before hitting Google for something simple. The good news is, Giraffe joined in! :) We made turtle appliques:


These are what we ended up with. :) We were going to do a cute little number we found in google images, but the link lead to a site with spam alert with unsafe "FRAUD ALERT!!!" pop ups screaming at us. Uhm... no, thank you!

^^^^^Here is the picture we ended up just eyeballing.^^^^^ 

You can see those turtles are only SO cute! I know we already did turtles, but those were 3D. These are flat, and can be sewn onto clothing, a headband, purse, tote bag... etc. I do wish the link worked. You can see in our picture that my first attempt (the neon green with light tan head/legs) came out much too large. That is because I got carried away with the rounds! Ha!

Granny Hook (size H) was my hook of choice, of course. I worked the first (again, lime green) in a half circle, turning and chaining one as I went. If he were smaller, he may have turned out cuter, but I'm not sure. I started with four stitches, doubled to eight, and followed the usual pattern for the next few rows (2sc, 1sc for a row... 2sc, 1sc, 1sc for a row... 2sc, 1sc, 1sc, 1sc for a row) instead of going immediately to fasten off, I worked single crochet across the flat bottom of the shell to give myself something to work in for the feet. I did fasten off at the end of the row, leaving enough yarn to sew in.  

The head was a simple matter of chaining five, working a few hdc's into the second stitch from chain, sc in the last stitches, including one more on the shell, and following back around with sc's to enlarge the head. The feet are simply 1sc each in two stitches per foot. No biggy. :) 

He looked a little big to me, so I made the next (green and white with cream head/feet) guy smaller. This time I worked completely in the round, starting with four sc's in a magic circle. The only difference is that on round two and three I chained a few stitches to flatten out the bottom of the shell. I left extra yarn for sewing them snugly against the rest of the shell. His head was the same as the first turtle, but I left off the second round of sc's that would've enlarged the head. The feet were still 2 sc's, but I kept them in the same stitch this time instead of working in 2 separate stitches per foot. 

Giraffe made the purple turtle. She worked in the round for the body, used magic circle with dc's for the head, slip-stitched it to the body - working increases across the bottom of the shell to create the body. She turned at the end, slip-stitching in the next two stitches. For the feet, she chained two and worked 3 double crochet into the same stitch. She slip-stitched three more times and worked the second foot the same way, ending on two slip-stitches back up to the head before fastening off. 

Anyway, these are very rudimentary instructions. These turtles are easy and fun to do. As you can see, playing around with pattern ideas makes different shapes. Bring out your creative side and join us!

Crochet Along! :)


Continue to Day Twenty-Four

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-Two


Good Morning!

Today I am working on something different. Much like the lighthouse...


and the horse...


I am going to go off the books. If you google 'red barn crochet dishcloth' you find very few options, and a really ugly (in my opinion) knit dishcloth. I am not looking to recreate that. I am looking to make the red barn in the classical shape I am obsessed with painting someday. So, no links today, but I *will* update when I have finished! 

Wish me luck!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ack! I have run out of yarn! It looks like this one is 'to be continued...'




Tuesday, June 21, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty-One


Good Afternoon!
I am well behind today, so I do not have a picture for you yet. 
However, I can tell you that we are working on Crochet Cherry Pie! 

Note: You will need how to do the popcorn stitch. 
Here is an online tutorial from Crochet Crowd. :) 


Crochet Along!
The free pattern can be found in the link below:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ UPDATE/RESULTS:

Okay, so this is not what you expected, alright? lol Giraffe loved how the pie looked unfinished and asked if we could keep it as a scrubbie. I thought that might be neat, so I went along with it.

A couple of things. I've run late enough on posting this that there are a few minor things not finished. I still have some edging yet to do. I also had two strings left to sew in. I also noticed after the picture that a couple of the cherries were popped inward and not out. So there's that. 

For some reason, my thread (which looks beige in person) looks khaki on the camera. I promise, this is not a white/cream colored pie! lol 

Anyway, the pattern is simple enough to work up (even if she doesn't tell you to turn). It would even be a fun and quick pattern if I hadn't taken so long on the blinking cherries! I actually did the other half in blue with a mix of small and large popcorns so it would be half blueberry pie and half cherry. Obviously, that wouldn't work for a scrubbie. haha

This pattern was worked up in 100% cotton with Premier Home skeins. I used my size H hook (as almost always). There were many, many Giraffe and Koala interruptions, but at least it still got done. ;) Somewhere in there my thumb began to feel sore from how much crocheting I've done. That made the end a bit tedious. I'm actually quite glad we decided to keep it useful instead of stuffing it! Yaaay, we're done! haha

Continue to Day Twenty-Two

Monday, June 20, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Twenty

Good Morning!

Also, happy first day of summer! :) 
This morning we have something that is very much a symbol of summer: a strawberry!


This was the perfect weekend workup, to be honest. It is a simply granny square stitch set, worked into a triangle. Even the green leaves are very easy and fun to do. I worked this up while watching a movie. Once you know the 3 double crochet, chain two pattern for inside stitches and that each corner has 3dc, ch2, 3dc - you're golden. There are five rows of that, topped with a row of dc's around the entire triangle. 

This pattern is worked in a size G hook (although, you know me... I used Granny Hook - h- my favorite) with 100% cotton yarn. I used Premier Home brand since I still have a lot of that left. I will be perfectly honest, though, that brand DOES fade when it comes to darker colors like red. You will not want to put it in the wash with light-colored clothing, for instance. 

Crochet Along!
Get your strawberry on for free at the link below:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Saturday, June 18, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Eighteen


Good Morning! :) 

Continuing a summery theme, today we have the yarnspirations ice cream dishcloth:


I really need to begin blocking my dishcloths. The cone looks perfectly fine, but because it curls up, the picture makes it look all wonky. :/ 

Anyway, another very quick/very easy pattern today. It didn't take any time at all to work up. That said, if I ever do this again, I will use the top of the cupcake from Twinkie Chan's cupcake pattern. I really hated the way this ice cream top looks in rows. Working in the round is so much better. I also prefer the cherry from the cupcake pattern a lot better, too. I've not made one since last year, but I think I'll make one tomorrow so you can see the difference. 

Anyway, a cute pattern overall - very easy and a lot of fun! :) Oh - quick note! There is a mistake in the pattern. If you read the part about constructing the cherry, it says to work single crochet around... then tells you to slip stitch into the first double crochet. If you look at the picture, they really did mean for you to double crochet the eleven stitches into the ring you made. 

Crochet Along!

Find the free pattern in the link below:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday, June 17, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Seventeen


Good Morning!

With summer only days away, it seems fitting to work up some seasonal dishcloths! :) This morning we have the ever-loved (by me, anyway) flip flop:


This is a simple pattern from Yarnspirations, made in 100% cotton and entirely of single crochet. I'll admit working my single crochet backward for the border threw me a little bit. lol In all, it was so easy and so, so fun! :) It also gets bonus points for working up so quickly. 

I made this in Premier Home Cotton teal and Lily Sugar 'N Cream Fleur de Lavende. I used Granny Hook (size H) and followed directions exactly. I will say, though, that I sewed in the right side of the strap too low. Oops! In all, I had a really good time making this. Koala is now demanding a pair of crocheted baby sandals for her feet. lol We'll see... ;)

Crochet Along!
This free pattern is available in the link below:



Thursday, June 16, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Sixteen

Good Morning!

Today we're going floral! :) Rather, I am LOSING to a pattern, because I do not have a visual aid to help me along. Grrr! When I get to the second row, it very clearly states in the pattern to start at the top of the chain two space by joining with a slip stitch. Then it says to chain one, followed by the pattern-typical 1 single crochet/chaintwo/one single crochet in the same place. That is followed by six single crochet down the side of the flower. I am good with all of that. I did that easily. 

However, the next set of instructions says to miss (skip) two single crochet. That would bring you to the next side where (in row one) we worked up six other single crochet. It says to skip two (that would be the bottom between petals) and work our 1sc, ch2, 1sc into the next chain one space. 




For one, there is NO chain one space mentioned anywhere in the 1st row. That has to be a typo of some sort. For another, you'd have to skip more than two stitches to get up to the chain two space, like so:



SO, here I am for the day so far. I'm actually waiting on help. I've posted in a FB crochet group asking what I am doing wrong. The pictures of this particular pattern do not seem to show any gaps of the size I would be creating by skipping all of those stitches. They also do not seem to reflect the intense curling I got when I followed through another three rows. (Yes, I've frogged a lot of rows to come back to this point.)

I am a visual learner. I need a video, or at the very least, a diagram. Argh!

Crochet Along!
Maybe you can figure out the pattern in the link below and tell me what to do! 


Bernat Plum Blossom Dishcloth

UPDATE: I went ahead with the idea that they simply had a typo by saying ch-1, and also that they forgot to add the final set of 6 sc to each petal. On that assumption, the pattern works just fine. Here it is at the end of row three:



You can see if I work it to the conclusion, it will end up with the correct pattern. That said, it takes aaages to move along one row at a time. This day does not have that kind of time in it. I fastened off at the end of row three and sewed in my end. I may take this pattern up again down the road, but that is not likely. 

Continue to Day Seventeen

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Fifteen


Good Afternoon!

Today I have a somewhat wobbly looking pencil dishcloth.


It was fun to make, but took more time than I planned on. You can see how many times I was distracted by how many visibly sloppy spots there are in it. 

I worked in pink instead of yellow because I'm saving my yellow for another project. This is 100% cotton, crocheted with a size 5 hook as stated in the instructions. 

Crochet Along!
This free pattern may be downloaded in the link below:




Tuesday, June 14, 2016

30 Day Crochet: Day Fourteen


Today we have a happy little sunshine. :)


This pattern comes with instructions for sunglasses and a smile. I am not sure yet if I want to go that far. I am waiting for some black yarn to come in the mail (along with my beige and other colors). I may add those later when I am able to. Right now I have a very small amount of black yarn, but not enough for this pattern. 

It worked up quickly enough, and was very easy to make. It is mostly worked in half-double crochet. I hate those, but did not end up in extra pain today. Yay! I used my size H Granny hook and Sugar 'N Cream brand Fleur De Lavende yarn. It is a scents yarn, and I find the lavender smell too hard to take. This is probably because I am prone to migraines. Thus, every time I work with it I end up breathing through my mouth instead of my nose. 

Crochet Along! :) 
Follow the link below for the free pattern: