Maric's Blanket

Well, silly me!  I found this article still in draft stage!  A quick update and it is ready for publishing!

Experienced eyes will spot some errors (compare the two "R"s), but my granddaughter won't notice!

This is a stitch called the Popcorn Stitch or I've seen it referred to as the Puffy Stitch.

I used this site for the pattern for the letters:  http://www.crochetnmore.com/babysabcsafghan.htm 

This afghan has about 150 ours invested in it.  I really like making personalized crochet items  like this.

It's All in the Detail Work!

Details.  Details. Do we really need those hand-cramping picots?  Blocking?  Is it really needed?

I am sharing some in-progress and before-and-after photos to show how the details make the difference.

This is a small doily or coaster pattern that I just love.  The way the white thread overlays the red center is just beautiful to me.  The pattern is called "Sunmote", designed by Julia Hart.  The pattern can be found here -->  https://www.draiguna.com/2018/02/sunmote.html  and is also available on Ravelry.com.  

I don't like making picots.  But I love the finish look they give a project.  The first "Sunmote" I made, I omitted the picots.  The pattern calls for 120 of them on this small doily.  Here is the unblocked photo:

It's still pretty.  Looks nice and I wouldn't have a problem putting it .... as is .... on my table.  But then another crocheter posted a photo of the ones she made for her daughter's wedding .... with picots.  Gosh, they looked beautiful, but I was still unwilling to do 120 of them on mine.  So I modified the last row and added a single picot on each "petal" of the doily. Compare them side by side.  The difference is subtle, but it makes a difference.

But wait .... I'm not done.  I always block all of my thread work so I pinned it to my bulletin board (that I use to block projects), sprayed it with just plain water, and let it sit overnight.  With this design, I had to pin the overlap onto the red center.

And here is the final result.  Compare this to the first photo.  With picots and after being blocked, it doesn't look like the same item.  Notice how the design is more clear after the blocking process.....you can see more of the detail.

I then made a set for Easter, in purple and peach.

This pattern is great for using up those leftover threads in your stash.  The pattern calls for size 3 thread and a larger hook for the center (red) and size 10 thread and smaller hook for the outer edging (white).  I didn't use size 3 thread when I made the purple/peach but I just had to add 2 rows to get my inner circle the correct size.  Had to add 2 rows to make the math come out right (final stitch count should be divisible by 4).  Of the two, I like the red one (size 3 thread) better because the thickness works better for use as a coaster.  If you are going to use it as a small doily (under a candy dish or flower vase), the thickness may not make a difference.

If you try this pattern, please visit Julia Hart's page and let her know you found it here!

Couch Tissue-Box Cover

I saw this pattern in a magazine and purchased the pattern right away.  I tucked it away and it was over a year before I finally dug it out and gave it a try.  You can find the pattern here:

https://www.e-patternscentral.com/detail.html?prod_id=7204 

I think I hid it away because it looked a bit complicated but I was happy to discover how easy this pattern really is.  On a Sunday, when I spend the entire day on the couch, watching movies while I crochet, I can get two of these completed.

The first one I made (the purple one), I used Caron soft yarn.  While it worked ok, the yarn was a bit fine for this project and took more stretching to fit it over the tissue box.

The second one I made, I used Red Heart yarn .... a bit thicker and it worked up to a good gauge, fitting over the box easily and with lots of flexibility.  I used an "H" hook.

These are very inexpensive gifts.  The entire project takes about a half skein of yarn.  Good projects for using up those leftover partial skeins.

After making the first one and posting it online for my friends to see, I started getting requests for them left and right.  Since I love to crochet,  I was thrilled to be able to make these as gifts for my friends.

Here are a few samples of the ones I have made:

My first prototype from the pattern.
It was a finer yarn that stretched more than it should have.

My second one. Experienced crocheters will be able
to see the difference in how much the couch seat
was stretched.  I think I did better on attaching the arms, too.

Made by request for my daughter's office.
She loved the contrasting colors!

My youngest daughter requested this one for her boss,
who is a big Indianapolis Colts fan!

And for a dear high school friend, who requested the colors
to match her furniture.

Ready for Christmas!  I can't wait to put this on my front
hall table next to a bowl of Christmas candy!

The Christmas Opposite ... plain color couch with
multi-colored Christmas pillows.

Made for my grand-niece in her favorite colors of pink and purple!

At some point, I am going to figure out how to make a small afghan and throw it over the back of the couch!!

A Friend for Elmo

Shortly after giving granddaughter Marci her "Elmo" (http://debiscrafts.blogspot.com/2015/01/elmo.html ), I got an interesting text from my son (Marci's dad):

"Mom .... if you're looking for another crochet project, we'd be happy to have a collection of Elmo's friends.  She won't put Elmo down.  If you're looking for ideas for something to make..."

Now how do you resist a text like that?  So off I go to find patterns to add to the doll collection.  It didn't take long and I found a "Kermit" pattern to purchase (less than $5 ..... https://www.etsy.com/shop/fatcatscrochet ).

Elmo was my first crocheted doll and Kermit followed the same/similar basic pattern.  I had him done is just a couple of evenings.  

Here is my finished project, shown perched on the Couch Tissue Box Cover I made for my daughter's office:

OOPS!! Stuff Happens!

Well, it was bound to happen sometime.  How did I know?  Because it happens to everyone at some time or another.

You get this far into a project and realize you have to scrap the whole thing because you miscounted.

I'll be honest.  I noticed it a few rows ago, but there was that little part of my brain that tried to convince me "It'll work itself out eventually."  Uh ... no, it doesn't.

So what happened here?

At the very beginning, after I made the initial "ch 6 and join",  I miscounted.  Instead of starting row 2 (yes, it goes all the way back to row 2!), with 16 total dc's, I ended up with 17.  That resulted in me creating 17 of those "spokes" instead of 16.  That extra spoke gave me my little tunnel that you see in the photo. That one single extra dc in the original circle caused all of this trouble.

Why did it take me so long to notice?  Familiarity.  I make this same pattern so often (see my earlier blogs on making bowls using this pattern) that I no longer need to look at the pattern.  I just happily crochet away, almost absent-mindedly, while watching television and before I know it, I have an extra spoke that just won't fit into the design of the circle.

So as soon as I post this, I'll be spending some quiet time unraveling this so I can start over.

Lesson learned!  No matter how familiar you are with your favorite patterns, it is a good idea to to stop and then to count your stitches and make sure you are still on track!

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ELMO!!!

Another first for me!  My very first crocheted stuffed doll!

I love Elmo.  I think I'm pretty safe in saying my kids love Elmo, too. So with some extra red yarn laying around, I decided to try to make my granddaughter an Elmo doll.

I found the pattern on "Maggie Makes Stuff" blog.  CLICK HERE to get to Maggie's blog for the pattern.

It was an easy work-up.  I spent maybe two evenings making Elmo body parts, then a quick evening of sewing them together.



The funniest part of the process was seeing Elmo body parts laying on my bed and my tables!!!

Head and body with mouth attached

Making the mouth looks like it would be confusing but follow the directions and you'll be fine.  I used red yarn to sew the mouth in place.  You can see the difference in the look this makes by comparing my Elmo's mouth and Maggie's Elmo mouth.





When I got to rows 24-25, where the directions say "inc 4 times evenly", I didn't worry about counting the stitches.  I just pressed the work together to find the "4 corners".  Think of it as finding the 12-3-6-9 positions on a clock.






In the photo, my thumb would be 6 o'clock, making the needle position 12 o'clock.  The two points on each side then become 3 and 9 o'clock.  And I have the 4 points where I would do the increase.


As I crocheted the legs and arms, the tiny cylinder shapes were a slight challenge to my older fingers but I found if I stuffed them with cotton balls as I worked, that made it much easier on me. 

It sure was fun to start putting him together and watch him actually start to look like an Elmo!!

But of course the final reward to all of this work is seeing him being hugged and loved by my granddaughter, Miss Marci!!  Marci's mom posted on facebook, "She required Elmo to join us on our trip to Target today, and that was the first time she HAD to bring a stuffy.  I couldn't even trick her into leaving it in the car."

And that, my friends, is the sole reason we all do this!!

Crocheted Bowls

No matter how many years I have under my belt in the crochet world, it is always fun to try something new.  Here's a first for me: Shaped crocheted bowls.

Start with a basic doily pattern. I like the one used in this blog article (http://debiscrafts.blogspot.com/2014/10/spoke-doily-variation.html),  The reason I like it is that is works up pretty quick, it has nice open spaces but is solid enough to function as a bowl without most things falling through the traditional doily loops.

Here is the flat doily I made using the pattern in the above link.  I used standard size 10 crochet thread and size 7 crochet hook.  The width is about the size of my hand from palm to fingertips.

Using a product called "Stiffy", I coated the doily and placed it on a saran-covered overturn bowl.  Smooth the doily out flat and smooth over the bowl and let it dry.  It takes about 45 minutes (but I just do mine and then go to bed).





The finished bowl is a great candy dish.  I took this one to school and keep it on my desk with paper clips in it.




This Victorian Pink bowl is made with size 3 crochet thread and a size "1" crochet hook.  It turned out a bit bigger.  I think with this one, I would stop at the white stripe at the top or make a different border ... and by "different" I mean "smaller".



I can whip one of these doilies out in about three to four hours, a nice evening project while watching TV.  These make great gifts for teachers, casual friends, gift exchanges at work.  


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