All posts tagged: Crochet

Can I re-learn how to knit?? Plus my new WIP..

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Before I jump into this fun story, go take a look at my new Yarn Shop page! That’s right, I’m working to open up my own yarn shop stocking Scheepjes Yarns for US customers. For now, you can get your hands on exclusive yarn&pattern kits – go check it out – I’ll wait here. ——————————— You back? Okay let’s settle in, where was I? Ah yes… once upon a time, I was a knitter. Surprised?? I actually started out my fiber arts journey as a knitter when I was in college. It wasn’t a whole lot different from now, as I was knitting every day with no end in sight, even sometimes cutting class to knit (sorry mom!). Knit and crochet were in the beginnings of making their comeback and us gals would meet at a cafe on campus and stitch the afternoon away. I made a ton of camis, sweaters, and cardigans, and I even made a blanket! Well, the beginnings of a blanket lol… These mitered squares were found at the bottom of …

Scheepjes YARN 04 – Dutch Masters

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Looking for something new to crochet? Scheepjes Yarns has released their latest issue of YARN bookazine, and it is so lush. Find this issue here at > WoolWarehouse < for speedy delivery. Dutch Masters is this issue’s theme, so the strong, deep colors - beautiful reds, purple, blue - are cozy, warm, and inviting. In fact, my coze factor has just dramatically increased.. I think I need a cup of coffee and a blanket; give me a sec.. Okay I’m back. So my contribution to YARN 04 is on the cover in the upper right corner. It’s a blanket named “New Horizons.” I did loads of research on the works of Piet Mondrian for my piece, and did you know he did so much more than the mod red blue and yellow squares that he’s known for? Yep, when I think of Piet Mondrian, I picture the primary color squares and rectangles shown in the image above, and I’ll bet you do too. But did you know Mondrian’s earlier works include broody landscapes with muddy, emotional color? …

Amazon Blanket gets a chic pastel palette

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When I was asked to make another Amazon Blanket in a new color palette, I agreed on the spot.  When I found out the colors would come to be an airy pastel array, anchored to the ground with a seriously cobalt blue, I started to get giddy.  And when I cut into the first granny square of fifty-five, my heart melted and I fell in love instantly. [Related: Amazon Blanket blog post] Just look at this Scheepjes | Softfun* and Softfun Denim* chic pastel palette…  How did this color spread come about? Well the recipient wanted a blanket for her daughter that would provoke happiness instantly just by looking at it. (Yes, this is a custom order! No I don’t do custom orders anymore! Slowly backing away now..) So after three palette proposals, and a few color swaps, we came up with the above spread. Actually when I look at it, it reminds me of a top secret project that I worked on with my good friend Carol Janik – The Hoosier Crocheter – Tester …

Scheepjes Linen Soft Yarn

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Tired of the same-old, same-old? Yeah, me too! No more smooth acrylic yarn! We want to feel the hearty texture of the yarn between our fingers as we crochet! Long live linen!  Okay, well, maybe not. Certainly there’s a place for the powerhouse soft acrylics out there. For the Colour Crafters in life that we need for everyday pieces. Yeah we need those.  But! Variety is the spice of life, and the spicy yarn I want to show off today is Scheepjes | Linen Soft*. It really does have an amazing texture to it. Perfect for a throw pillow or a couch blanket.  Check out this expertly crafted fiber content. It’s like the Negroni of yarn – an indulgent 3-ingredient cocktail (equal parts gin, Campari, sweet vermouth – errr.. linen, cotton, acrylic).  My personal favorite color of Linen Soft! Hummingbird ❤️ – although that mustard pictured in the first photo is wonderful. I love how all of the colors in this range would work well together. And here is a snapshot of the full palette …

VVCAL blanket in green palette – A very green post :)

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With my trusty KnitPicks Palette yarn, I’ve started a new Vibrant Vintage CAL blanket. You may remember this CAL from January – August 2016 – the Facebook Group has nearly 4000 members! You can find the 33 free granny square patterns in PDF format at Ravelry or at the post linked above.  In the meantime, check out this spiffy green version! Palette yarn is awesome and as the name suggests, there are a ton of colors – and some are even heathered.  I made one tester square to see what hook I was going to use – Size E! Then I had a serious planning sesh for my chosen squares – the recipient wants mostly three dimensional squares instead of flat ones. And some joining in progress! You can see a bunch of join options on the VVCAL main page linked above, or look through all the joining methods I show on my site. Or to see what some IG crafters have already done by browse the #VVCAL hashtag on Instagram. Looking forward to showing y’all …

Food Scale = Total Game Changer

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Between writing free content, self-publishing paid patterns, and completing design commissions, my business is getting to be more stressful and less fulfilling lately. So I’ve been taking a closer look at the pretty crafter photos on social media, searching for tools and tips to make my crochet life easier. A strong tool that I discovered and added into my pattern designing tool kit is a food scale. This is the one I have: Amazon.com – Weighing the Cozy Flowers blanket free pattern coming soon 😍🔥 Instead of just listing the ways I use this digital scale, I thought I’d spend a week taking a snapshot every time I used it. You can really see it in action during my Hexagon Month with Scheepjes Yarns*! Monday In making motifs for Autumn Blues, I figured out how many of the orange centers I could get from one ball of Catona*. I weighed one motif – 6g. Each ball of Catona is 50g, so I can get about 7-8 motifs per ball. This is the most common way I have used …

Whip St Join for Hexagons

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Hi there! For this YouTube Video tutorial, click here.  (Ravelry link coming soon) Note: This tutorial is part of Hexagon Month – September’s Theme of the Month. Introduction If you absolutely cannot fathom the idea of sewing your motifs together, then this is the sewing join for you. I’m working on a huge blog post with all the joining methods I could find, and there are pros and cons to each one.  When to use: You don’t have a whole lot of yarn to join with You want a “barely there” join that’s easier than for example, mattress st You want to dip your toe in the waters of sewing your motifs together Try it! It’s very easy and doesn’t feel like sewing since you’re using your hook. Materials Normally you would use a tapestry needle for the whip st join, but if you’re anything like me, using something besides your hook makes you cringe. So I just use my hook! You’ll also need some yarn in a similar color as the motifs to blend …

Continuous Flat Braid Join for Hexagons

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Welcome to the Continuous Flat Braid JAYG for Hexagons tutorial. I’ve made a video for this Join, but written instructions are added below. I recommend looking at both the video and the written instructions for the best clarity. (Add this pattern to your favorites on Ravelry!) [Related: Sept 2017 is Hexagon Month!] Video Instruction Part 1 Link to Part 1 on YouTube Part 2 Link to Part 2 on YouTube  Written Instruction Materials A pile of hexagons, with the same stitch count around. It doesn’t matter what the pattern is. For these Hexagons I have 18 sts between my 3-sc corners. I used Scheepjes Cotton 8 yarn and these hexies are from my Autumn Blues Blanket releasing this weekend. If you’ll be filling in the half-hexagons on the sides, set those to the side for now. They’ll be added in once all of the full hexies are joined together. Joining yarn – you’ll want to have full balls of this, as one of the joys of joining continuously is that you eliminate having to weave …