Saturday, September 13, 2008

Amber's 1st Pattern


My baby made her very first crocheted piece.
She's not much of a baby anymore. She's 12 already.

This is her very first pattern!


My aspiring designer!

For her free pattern, click below

Baba's Eyeglass Case
& Neck Holder


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Monday, September 8, 2008

Haekelbeutel Bag


Stats:

Red Heart Peach and Soft White
H hook

17 inches across
11 inches from center dip to bottom.

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My favorite model!
My 5 ft tall 12 yr old


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Straps

21 inches long
2 inches wide.


75 chains in the center peach strip
The center strip is worked in my absolute FAV way of making pocketbook straps. Then it's just crocheted in as part of the outline around the top of the bag.

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Squares

6 rounds - 6 inches


I just used the square that came with the pattern.

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Closure

I love using this closure.


It's so easy to do and it looks so pretty.
The flower is the button

and the tab only looks hard.


I'll be writing up the pattern soon for
the flower button closure.
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End Notes

I am so happy that this pattern is so forgiving.
If you take a close look at it - the wrong side of the squares are showing on the right side of the bag. I stayed with it cuz I didn't want to rip out all of the last 2 rounds inside and outside of the handles.

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C'ville has a CAL going for this bag. You can check out lots of different styles and colors and tons of tips and ideas at the Heakelbeutel Bag CAL.

If you don't want to join the CAL but just want to make the bag the pattern can be found below. Just be aware that it opens as a PDF file so if you're using Adobe - jamb on.

Pattern for Inga's
Crocheted Bag


I use the Foxit PDF Reader for all of my PDF files.
It's an awesome & free program

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Wednesday, September 3, 2008

2nd Annual International Crochet Day

September 12

is

International
Crochet
Day


Inspired by my most favorite hookmaker of all time!

Jimbo has started something that he us now unable to stop!
It has taken on a life of it's own and is
spreading around the globe.

A day to share to our love of crochet.

International Crochet Day truly is international:
Brazil, Portugal, Germany, New Zealand, USA
just to name a few.

Check out Jimbo's Front Porch to
find out more about ICD and to
check out his wonderf handmade crochet hooks.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

I am the GRAND PRIZE Winner

Here it is!!! My
Silver Medal winning aghan!

I may have taken a silver in the games,
but I won the Grand Prize Drawing!

pattern book

enough yarn to make my afghan of choice
which is #6 Ethnic Drop Stitch.

and a red canvas bag to hold it all in!

Thank you Coats & Clark for sponsoring the
Crochet Games! and thank you to Vicki Blizzard for
getting a hold of me so quickly regarding the prize drawing!
You guys are great!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

I know, I know . . .


I've been bad. I've been lazy.
I haven't been posting like I should be.
Life's been busy lately.

Really, really good but busy.

Anyway, I will be posting my Crochet Games project
with all the gory details very soon.
(Maybe even today if I force myself)

But I did crochet a 7 foot round ripple in 2 weeks,
so I guess lazy really isn't the right word.
lolol

I missed the gold by 2 1/2 rounds
:(

Saturday, August 16, 2008

What I've been up to

Delete
Blogger Heather said...

I'd been wondering what you've been up to. That is BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!! I must learn how to make it!!!

********************

Thank you so much!
Thank all of you that've left comments about my newest ghan! I just love it!

Honestly - I haven't been up to much. I had such a bad flare up with my carpel tunnel that I wasn't able to hold a hook for about 2 months.

Sad to say - I think my thread days may be over. I did 2 doilies back to back and my hands were useless.

I hope I don't overdo it with this monster ghan.

~~~~~ NEWS ~~~~~

I do have several new patterns on the back burner at the moment. You all know I love filet. I think it's time to start using filet with yarn as that's what my hands are dictating. I have a couple shawls in the making and I finally pulled out my Ladders of Love baby ghan to work on that some more. (Honestly - I just found it again.)

There are so many round ripple patterns on the net that I'm just going to write up a basic overview for this purple one. I love the way it's coming out!


Friday, August 15, 2008

Crochet Games @ the Ville

better late than never.


Crochet Games

of

Ancient Greece


Thanx to AmyS & Donna at our fav crochet hangout- C'ville - we have our very own special games going on. We're competing for medals and honors and glory! Yeehaw!


But seriously . . . we're having our very own Crochet Games in honour of the Olympic Games. The difference with our games is it's all 'on our honour' from starting with the opening ceremonies and crocheting our way thru the closing ceremonies. Our medals are based on our word that the projects we picked were completed in the allotted time. We don't have judges knitpicking (pun intended) our work and speed and agility. We just have to complete a project we believe to be a challenge to ourselves.


I happen to be on Team Afghan with an AWESOME bunch of ladies!


Make sure to check out that link - there are some beautiful ghans going on there and lots of encouragement as well.


My project is a 48 point Round Ripple in purples.
4plyww and an I hook
5 feet across
with another 2 feet to go.



Saturday, July 26, 2008

Friday, July 11, 2008

Pizza Tray Trivit

I adapted Crochet Patty's
Antlia Doily

Instead of using #5 thread I used
peaches and cream cotton and an F hook.

I worked the doily thru round 14.
For the border I worked
(sc, ch3) in each space around.

It measures 14 inches across.

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Friday, June 13, 2008

US Navy Anchor Tapestry Pillow

This I made for my Father in Law.
He was a Signalman in the Navy during WWII.

He has some incredible stories about flashing morse code from the tops of naval ships while under enemy fire! Apparently they targeted the Signalman so that they couldn't communicate with other ships. He has some great stories about docking in foreign ports, too lol.

I wasn't sure what to do with the tapestry -
it measures 12w x 16h
RHSS 4ply ww - H hook

I turned this one into a pillow.
I matches the fleece throw that I quilted for his chair.

On this one - instead of embroidering the lines and designs - I surface crocheted. It really gives it a super cool 3d raised effect. In person - the chain has the gold showing thru.

(You can see the fabric color on the bottom)

For the border I worked ch6 at the end of every row and sc, ch6 across the top and bottom. I used white to finish the rope effect, ch4, pull thru navy loop, sl st into place and repeat around. You really can't see it in this pic but the white curls around the navy.

I used gold fabric, made a slipcover for the pillow, hand sewed the crochet to the fabric, stuffed it and finished sewing the seam on the machine.

After I finished these 2 pieces I round Carol Alexanders blog on tapestry crochet.

Saturday, June 7, 2008

A & Eagle for Father's Day

After embroidery.


This took me 2 weeks.
I used 4plyWW and a G hook
(never again)
Measures 20"w x 16"h
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Before embroidery:

My Dad worked at Budweiser for 20 some years before he got hurt at work. I remember way back when you still had to get a liscence to go on a CB his handle was The Budman!

He has the house decorated by Budweiser. I have a picture somewhere of me in my red snowsuit with the Bud logo on my hat. He even had the kid decorated by Budweiser. He gave me a HUGE double size Bud Label beach towel. I was wrapped up in it and laugher -
I'm still the kid decorated by Bud.

Dad'll be on a trip for Father's Day so he got his present early when he came up to visit!

He LOVED it!

He Loved it so much he's going to have it framed! WOW!

I love you, Daddy!

Happy Father's Day!

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Friday, May 30, 2008

Saving a family heirloom

My Grandmother made these many moons ago. These are the only pieces she ever made in size 20 thread. She just didn't like working with it. She was more of a pineapple kind of crocheter.

There are 2 pieces here. A dresser scarf and a chest of drawers scarf or in my case, 1 for my piano and 1 for my coffee table.

!!!WARNING!!!

This picture is not for the faint of heart!

Don't say I didn't warn ya!

After 2 days of washing and cleaning and soaking ...
it looked like this.

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I finally decided that it was already ruined and that I did everything I possibly could before I gave in and got the bleach.
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These are the results!

The dresser scarf that now lives on my piano.

This is the flower basket on the end of the scarf on my piano.

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This one is on my coffee table.
It still needs some repair work to the fabric itself.

Pineapple Trivit/Dishcloth


Materials
Crochet Cotton of choice - F hook
~ or ~
2 strands Crochet Cotton - J hook
Gauge -
2strand Trivet/Dischcloth -
Trivot/Dishcloth


Special Stitches
Shell (2dc, ch2, 2dc) in ch2 sp
Side Shell - sl st into ch2 sp, (ch3, dc, ch2, 2dc) in ch2 sp
5dc cl w/ picot- ch2, holding last loop on hook to create cluster: dc in ch2sp, 3dc in next ch2sp, draw thru all 5 loops, ch3Picot - ch3, turn, sl st into top of cluster, tie off.



Pineapple Trivit/Dishcloth

Instructions
ch5, sl st in 1st ch to form loop
Rnd 1 - ch3 counts as 1st dc now and throughout. (2dc, ch2) 5times, (2dc, ch4), (2dc, ch2) 3 times
~ or ~ (2dc, ch2) 8 times - without hanging loop,
sl st into top of ch3 to join
* Now you'll begin working in rows & turning at the end of each.
Row 2 - Side shell, ch2, shell in shell
Row 3 - side shell, (dc, ch5, dc) in next ch sp, shell in shell
Row 4 - side shell, 10dc in ch5 sp, shell in shell
Row 5 - side shell, ch1, (dc, ch1) in the next 10dc's, shell in shell
Row 6 - side shell, ch2, sc in ch sp, (ch3, sc in ch1sp) across, ch2, shell in shell [8 ch3sps]
Row 7 - side shell, ch2, sc in ch3 sp, (ch3, sc) in next ch3 sp, across [7 ch3sps]
Row 8 - repeat row 6 [6 ch3sps]
Row 9 - repeat row 6 [5 ch3sps]
Row 10 - repeat row 6 [4 ch3sps]
Row 11 - repeat row 6 [3 ch3sps]
Row 12 - repeat row 6 [2 ch3sps]
Row 13 - repeat row 6 [1 ch3sp]
Row 14 - side shell, ch2, sc in ch3 sp, ch2, shell in shell
Row 15 - side shell, shell in next shell
Row 16 - sl st into ch2sp, begin 5dc cl w/ picot.
Tie off. Weave in ends. Block.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Crocus Doily

I just luv making this piece.

It's one of the few pieces I've made more than once and will probably make again. The pattern and the pattern repeats are so incredibly simple for such a complex looking doily.

I made this with my Bates 6 steel hook and #10 thread.
It measures 18 1/2 inches across.


This pattern is so incredible. This is the doily towel dried and laid out. It's still damp. It doesn't need pins, it doesn't need ironing, it just lays smooth.

I made this to go with a vintage lamp my husband fell in love with. I can't wait to finish getting everything unpacked from our trip so I can put them out together!

A close up view.
You can find the pattern here at the Coats and Clark site.

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Saturday, May 10, 2008

2 more Serafina's



I just love my model!

Even the dog had to get in on these!

How to make a flat Serafina

Can you believe that I used 4ply ww RH in Hot Red and Black with an I hook!

Look how smooth that fabric is!

I have finally figured out how to make a Serafina flat while using the correct hook for the yarn. It is soooooooo simple.

I realize that I do Seraphina Shawls a little differently than everyone else. I have 4dc's on each side of the shell columns. I think that it gives it a more even look. This works no matter which way you make them.

Directions
When it comes time to make the shells -
use a hdc instead of a dc.

From your very 1st Vst (hdc, ch1, hdc)
to your very last Shell (3hdc, ch2, 3hdc)
use hdc's.

Always use the DC Shell down the center.
The hdc's are for the sides only.

I promise it works!


Check your local fuel prices

I just added a cool (and useful)

new widget.

Check your local gas prices

before you fill up!

Scroll 1/2 way down,
fill in the zip code & info
and Save Settings.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Coming Soon...

How to crochet a

Serafina Shawl

without ripples in the shell columns!!!!!

Using 4plyWW and an I hook!!!

(I need batteries for my camera!)

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

On Display at Mom's 3

I made these, too!




On Display at Mom's 2

I made these!

The 8 1/2 foot Round Ripple
on a Double Bed

My very 1st MAM
That's Pooky & Gizmo with Amber on the couch!


On Display at Mom's House

My Grandmother made these!






Friday, May 2, 2008

Hi Mom!!!

My Mom finally got a new computer and
can start checking out the net. YAY!

This is for you, Mom!

!!! Hi Mom !!!
!!! Hi BABA !!!

! we LOVE you !

!!! we MISS you !!!


We can't wait to see you again!


Friday, April 25, 2008

Pattern of the Day Widget!!!!!

Scroll down
and check out the new
(from Widgetbox)
**********
ICD now has a crochet
Pattern of the Day!!!!!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

links to download pdf files

You can now download my free patterns in PDF format !


Survivor's Ribbon Shawl

Prayer Cloth

Gingham Ghan


Google pages ROCKS!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Diamond Ghan in beige

Another Christmas present completed!!! YAY!!!

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Caron Perfect Match in beige
I hook
just shy of 3 pounds!

4 1/2 X 6 1/2 feet with edging
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The side view really shows the lines thru
the diamonds going across the ghan.

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I used the 'Pearls & Lace Edging'
It was an Annie's Attic Pattern of the Day
(except it was in thread around a picture frame on AA)

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The view from standing on my kitchen chair
really shows off the diamond pattern in the ghan.


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This even looks awesome folded!


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Spring Seraphina in White




Can you guys stand another one?

My Spring weight Seraphina

RH Baby Pompador in White
Crystalites L hook

30 " from center to point

This one is MINE!

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Camo Serafina


I'm hooked!!

This is another 24" Serafina
with 4 dc's between the points.

RH Camo - J hook

I trimmed it in black. It's the only color I have that goes with the RH Camo at all. They really need to come out with co-ordinating colors like Bernat did.

I did the last row of shells and a sc border in black,
there's a 5hdc scallop across the top,
I also added ties & tassels to this one.

A little bit of scallop and a little bit of bow
to make the camo just a little more girlyish.