02 September 2016

Gift Wrap Idea

Remember the little gift case I sewed for a friend some time ago? Well, when the time came to give it away, I didn't have any fancy gift wrapping paper handy, only some plain wrinkled white paper from an Ikea box!

However, if there is something I am NEVER short of, it's yarn, and so I got a bit creative:


Three different colours of cotton yarn, wrapped 5 or 6 times around the plain paper and secured with a tight double knot (and loose ends cut) at the back, and presto! you have a lovely, original gift wrap that shows some thought as well.


I hope you like the idea and it makes you want to use it in the future, unless you have already come up with something similar for your gifts? Let me know! :)

31 August 2016

A granny square update... and an announcement

Hello, dear readers!

Where has the year gone, I have no idea! Well, the reason I have been away for so long is actually twofold.

First, I got married in May, for which I was making crochet flowers earlier this year. The wedding was fabulous, and I hope to soon be able to share pictures of its amazing DIY vibe.

As for the second reason... well, you may remember my last granny square challenge post about a mysterious project. The squares have now turned into this:



stalled

A crocheted building block! :) And said crocheted building block now belongs to...


Little L, a sweet little boy who arrived into the Little Crochet household last month! So as you can probably guess I have been very busy of late taking care of my new little bundle of joy, and have had little time for anything else. This has meant quite a few stalled WIPs (especially as Little L arrived slightly early) and no blogging, of course.

But I am slowly finding my feet again and I hope to be able to get back to crocheting and blogging more often, so watch this space! :)

Head over to Dane et le crochet for more granny squareness :)


13 April 2016

Decorative Wedding Flowers

Hello! So I have crocheted a few more decorative flowers for my wedding, having currently just over a hundred of them. Ideally, I'd need twice as many, but at this rate, I'm not sure if I'm ever going to reach that figure...

Anyway, here's a sneak peek...



Head over to this week's Granny Love Challenge at Dane's for more lovely makes!

09 April 2016

A Gift Card Case

Goodness, here's a post that was a long time coming. It's been lurking in my draft list since November last year!

So, back then, I bought gift cards for a friend's birthday, but I thought it would be nice and more personal if I made a little case to put them in.

Armed with leftovers from a fat quarter, some bias binding and felt (for the lining), I whipped up this little fella:


The most challenging part was actually topstitching the bias binding tape, as the case was too small to fit around my sewing machine arm. So I had to do it by hand, being very careful to be as even as possible. It didn't turn out so bad. :)


Such a simple make, but so effective and personal as a gift, I think!


06 April 2016

A Sweet Little Project

Hello! I am currently taking a break from crocheting decorative flowers for my wedding, as I seem to have developped a bit of an allergy to them. I know, with only one month to go to the big day, this is quite unfortunate, but hey ho, it's not the end of the world... At least the dress is ready :D

Anyway, today's about a new little secret project I have had in mind for a while and which feels very special to me.


As you can see, I have crocheted squares with various techniques and yarns, trying to depart as much as possible from my usual preferred colour palette.

These two are tapestry crochet:



This one uses the so-called "linen stitch":


This one below is a (wonky) granny square using only dcs (US scs):


This one, which I can no longer find the name of at the moment, is made by crocheting rows of 1 dc, 1 treble (1 US sc, 1 US dc):


And finally, this one is made of rows of dcs (US sc) crocheted alternatively in the back and front loops of the previous row, with a variegated yarn:


All very good fun to make and quite a nice challenge for some of them! Can you guess what I plan to make with them?

Don't forget to have a look at what the other challengers have made over at Jijihook's :)

Thanks for reading, and see you soon!

30 March 2016

Update On The South Bay Shawlette Front


Quite a while ago, I embarked on a South Bay Shawlette project. Back then, I predicted it would take me a while, and I was absolutely right!

It's not even finished yet, as I'd like to add a row or two of the grey yarn to complete it. However, I have woven the ends in to be able to wear it in the last chilly days of early spring.

Here's the result so far:


The grey and turquoise yarn are the Icelandic brand Lopi, the cream one is, I think, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, and the variegated one is Araucania (though not sure which range anymore...). The whole thing is crocheted with a 5mm crochet hook. It has a beautiful drape and is very warm indeed.


That's it for now, and that's one for the Granny Love Challenge over at Isa Bricole, where you can see other grannyesque creations.

Thanks for reading! :)

21 March 2016

Textured Ripple Cowl Scarf - Basic Pattern

Hello! I have been meaning to share this finished project with you for a while now, so am delighted that I'm finally getting round to it.

It started with a few balls of Noro Silk Garden found on offer at my local John Lewis:


If you've read my blog before, you'll know I'm a huge fan of variegated yarn in general and of Noro yarn especially. And what's not to like? It's so lusciously beautiful...

Anyway, although I knew straight away I wanted to make a wearable out of it, I wracked my brains for a while, looking for a pattern that would bring out the magnificent colours of this yarn. Then I thought "ripples". But not any ripple pattern. It wanted it to have texture, so I adapted Attic 24 Lucy's Neat Ripple Pattern by basically adding a row of double crochet (US single crochet) stitches between each row of trebles (US double crochets). The main thing about this in-between row is that it was worked in the back loops of the trebles from the previous row (with the wrong side of the scarf facing me). Once the row was finished, I would turn and start a new row of ripples, working in the back loops of the double crochets (US scs) of the previous row AND in the back loops of the trebles from the row before that one. This double loop trick helped to make the scarf a lot denser and warmer. I know it sounds confusing... It's one of those that would definitely need a photo or video tutorial (note to self).

Anyway, here's how it looks in the flesh fibre:



And worn by yours truly:


So, to sum up...

Note: I have just realised I haven't exactly followed Lucy's pattern in the sense that I made tr3tog instead of tr2tog, and 3 tr in one stitch instead of 2. This makes for a slightly more pronounced ripple, but the principle is the same.

Abbreviations: ch (chain), dc (UK double crochet = US sc/single crochet), tr (UK treble = US dc/double crochet), tr3tog (3 UK trebles together), bl (in back loop), blx2 (in back loop of dc of previous row AND in back loop of 3rd ch/tr from row before)

Beginning: Chain a multiple of 14+3 (I did 45), turn.
Row 1: 2 tr in 4th loop from hook, 1 tr in next 3 ch stitches, *[tr3tog in next 3 ch stitches] twice, 1 tr in next 3 ch stitches, [3tr in next ch stitch] twice, 1 tr in next 3 ch stitches*, repeat from *to* until you have one ch stitch left and work 2 tr in that one, ch1, turn.
Row 2: 1 dc bl in each tr/tr3tog to end, ch3, turn.
Row 3: 2 tr blx2 in last dc, 1 tr blx2 in next 3 dc, *[3trtog blx2 in next 3 dc] twice, 1 tr blx2 in next 3 dc, [3tr blx2 in next dc] twice, 1 tr blx2 in next 3 dc*, repeat from *to* until you have one ch stitch left and work 2 tr blx2 in that one, ch1, turn.
Row 4 - x: repeat row 2 and 3 to desired length.

To make up into cowl scarf: fold both ends with right sides together and join with a row of dc in back loops of both rows. Fasten off and weave ends in.

Let me know how you get on and if you spot any mistakes in the above pattern.

Thanks for reading! :)

16 March 2016

Decorative Flowers

Hello! My goodness, has it been that long since my last post? Three months! Well, the good news is I haven't been idle, I have been prepping the wedding, which is now in less than 2 months, and crocheting my dress, which I am pleased to say is finished, at least for the crochet part. I will of course show it on the blog, but in due time... ;-)

In other wedding-related news, I have been crocheting tiny flowers to scatter on the tables on the big day. I should really get a move with those ones, as I will need a couple of hundreds, methinks...

Anyway, here's a peek:


The pattern is by Color n' Cream and can be found here. They're huge fun to make and brilliant to use up those scraps of yarn. They're very versatile, not to mention extremely cute. You could make hairclips, brooches, necklaces, bracelets or even decorate cards with them. Definitely give them a go, you'll love them!



Thank you for reading, everyone, and see you very soon!