Go beyond the granny square

Last month our playgroup had a tea party, so since I had a ton of fun fur, I made a few scarves. My hope was that they would be like boas and fun for the kids to use with their dress up costumes. They turned out pretty cute but didn’t have much interest from the 2-3 year old crowd.

I had planned on giving them to the little girls but since they didn’t seem to have an interest in the scarves, I just brought them home. There are eight of them, so I had considered placing them on Etsy as they would make a cute birthday happy for a princess party. Hopefully someone can use them. They are cute. If they don’t sell, then I may use some as gifts.

First let me apologize for my lack of posting. I’ve been sick and also trying to concentrate on organizing our household. I also need to prioritize my crochet projects since I have several projects I want to start but need a plan. Right now I’m still working on an angel baby blanket I started in May. It’s a baby blanket for my cousin. She had her first little girl June 10th, so now I really need to finish this thing.

It’s a filet crochet motif with an angel in the center. I’m about one-third of the way complete and hope to finish this week. I plan on doing a row every hour to break it off into manageable chunks. The blanket itself is not hard since it’s mainly double crochet. It just takes time. This is why I prefer small projects like amigurumi that can be completed in a few hours.

I hope to be done or close to down by the end of the week. I really want to get this blanket in the mail.  It feels like I’ve been working on it for years when it’s really only been a little over a month. I’m ready to be done with it even though I have at least two more baby blankets to do in the near future.

While watching TV last night that included the season finale of The Office, I finished the crochet hook/knitting needle holder. I did ten pockets, to it will hold either 10 hooks or 5 sets of knitting needles.

It turned out really well. I was glad that I switched colors and ended with the multi-color yarn. It helps to make it stand out and not look so bland.

One project I started this week was a crochet hook/knitting needle holder. I’m making it as part of a craft swap.  I found the pattern through Ravelry and it’s crocheting up pretty quickly.

Here is the free crochet hook holder pattern. Instead of buttons, I plan on either using ribbons or glass beads to hold it together. My swap partner is a bead artist, so I thought it would be fun to incorporate beads into one project.

I plan on making 10 pockets. I’m on number eight, so I hope to finish this today. I just need to find some beads/ribbon to complete it.

One down, two more to go. Baby blankets that is. I had to scrap the one I had started because the corners just weren’t right. It was bunching up too much. So I finished this one this afternoon - an hour before the baby shower.

I used different stitches like single crochet, extended single crochet, and double crochet. I used a shell stitch to make the border. I was glad to finish it before the shower since I started it only five days ago.

Now I can start on the next baby blanket. It’s from a pattern and should be really pretty if it turns out as well as the magazine picture.

My yarn stash is taking over. Seriously I really need to use some of it up to gain back some space. It’s hard to donate since it’s one skein of this and one skein of that, so I’ve been  looking for crochet projects that would look good with several different colors of yarn.

Since I’ve been wanting to make a crochet rug for some time, I am going to make one using my yarn stash. This vintage crochet round rug is colorful and might be a good project. The pattern is straightforward and I’ve been wanting to make a rug for my little girl’s room for quite some time. I might adjust it some because I want to make a bigger rug so instead of one circle, I may do several that are different sizes then join them together.

A rug should take up at least a few skeins since you use two strands together. Hopefully this will give me the rug I’ve been looking for and help me cull my yarn stash.

I started a new baby blanket yesterday. I had been working on a star pattern one for months but finally just finished the round I was on and finished it off. I gave it to my daughter who seemed to really like it. She promptly wrapped one of her dinosaurs in it. Not sure if she will ever play with dolls. But that’s OK.  Back to the new baby blanket. I had found some lovely Bernat baby yarn that was pink and yellow. It just reminded me of the soon to be new mom. Here’s what I have so far -

I decided to make it square because I wanted to do a nice border and thought it would be easier for me to do it this way. So far I really like it. Keeping it square has been a job since a few corners I turned too early and then have to frog to fix it. So now I’m careful to notice a corner before I make too many stitches.

I’m using single crochet because I want it to have a tight look. One problem I had with the star blanket is I used double crochet and it just seemed too airy. I keep thinking how easily it could be snagged on something and break since it’s a light weight yarn.

I will probably have to work on this for a while, so thank goodness I’m using an easy stitch. I can work on it while watching TV. At least it will keep me from snacking all night long.

Making baby blankets is one of my favorite projects. I think it has something to do with working with the incredibly soft baby yarn. It just feels so good going between the fingers. This year I have two sisters-in-law and a cousin pregnant that creates at least three reasons to crochet a baby blanket.

I’ve been working on this star blanket for one baby since December. I’m not happy with it as one point is shorter than the others, so I’m probably going to finish the next round and be done with it. I will give it to the little girl for her a baby blanket for her dolls or stuffed animals since she plays more with them anyway.

The latest Crochet! magazine also has a cute ripple baby blanket although I’m not sure if I have the right yarn. Crochet World magazine had an adorable angel crochet baby blanket pattern that I plan to make for one of the babies.

Two babies are due in June and one is due in November. So I have just a few months to create two blankets and then I will have a little longer to finish the third one. I’m going to make two summer blankets so I’m using a light weight yarn. For the November baby I will buy a super bulky yarn to make a warmer blanket.

Besides the baby blanket, I want to do a small amigurumi animal (all one piece) and baby booties.

It’s hard to believe that Easter is almost upon us. There’s still a few things that we need to do to get ready for the holiday. I always had a new basket for Easter. This year I thought it would be fun to crochet one for the little girl. If you are in need of an Easter basket, then grab your hook and yarn.

What you’ll need -

worsted yarn
crochet hook(I used size 5 but you can use a larger hook to make a larger basket)

Begin by chaining 2
Then work six single crochet(sc) into the first chain, join.
Now work two sc into each stitch(12), join
Sc one and then in the next stitch work two sc, repeat(18) join
Sc in next two and then two sc into next stitch, repeat(24), join
Sc in next three stitches, 2 Sc into next stitch, repeat(30), join
SC in next four stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat(36), join
Sc in next five stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat(42), join

Sc into back loop all the way around, join

Now that we are working on the sides of the basket, we are going to double crochet.

Double crochet for five rounds (or until you’ve reached the desired height of your basket.)

We’re going to do a round of shell stitches to make the ruffled look for the edge of the basket.

A shell stitch is five double crochets into one stitch, chain 2, skip 2 stitches, repeat. Do this for one round. Here is a close up look -

To do the handle, work six sc across a shell.

Turn and do five sc, chain 1 and turn.
Repeat until you have 35 rows.

Join the sc to the other side of the basket.

You may have to starch the basket to get the handle to stay up by itself.

While I have trimmed down my holiday crocheting, there are still four projects I need to finish - 2 lapghans and 2 star baby blankets.

I found an easy star baby blanket pattern that I think I understand! LOL That’s the problem with some patterns is that I can’t follow all the instructions. But this one looks pretty straightforward.

Hopefully it won’t take too long to do. I have some Bernat baby yarn that I bought and never used. It should be enough for one of the baby blankets. For the other one, I plan to use a worst weighted yarn since the baby is already here and the blanket will be used this winter. The other baby isn’t due until the summer, so a lighter weight yarn would be perfect for a summer blanket.

Crocheting the star baby blanket will give it a little finesse without having to work through a complicated pattern. Hopefully I still have time to finish up these projects.