crochet Archives - Page 16 of 28

A Christmas Wish List for Crocheters!

November 26, 2018November 26, 2018crochet9 Comments

Before we begin, please let me be clear to my family & friends, this isn’t my personal wish list. Don’t literally get me this stuff! Chances are, I have caved and already bought these things for myself…

Right, anyway, this really is very simple. You have a lover of crochet in your life and you need/want to get them something for Christmas. Take a look at this list and I’m sure you will find something that they will LOVE.

You’d think this was a post containing those affiliate links, it’s not. I’m just making things up as I go!

1. Yarn

Goes without saying. Make it good stuff though, yeah? Think along the lines of posh(ish), high end commercial yarn or a gorgeous skein (or two) of indie dyed. Take a look at the sort of thing your friend/family member likes to make and try to match up a bit. If they only like to make baby blankets, the likelihood is they won’t be into a hank of speckled 4ply. Get them quality DK instead. If they’re into making shawls or socks then the indie dyed hank/skein would be brilliant. Find a local yarn shop and chat to the owner to get some help if you need it, or if that’s not possible then you probably won’t go wrong in a John Lewis haberdashery department. Don’t forget that mini skeins make great stocking fillers!

2. Magazine Subscription

There are loads to choose from so this is hard. If I narrow it down to UK subs that makes it easier. Inside Crochet magazine would be my choice, it has contemporary, stylish designs and also embraces the traditional. I also enjoy Mollie Makes as an all round crafty mag. Then there’s Simply Crochet and Crochet Now, both have a good mix of content.

For high-end there’s Pompom Quarterly but I get cross with Pompom. It says there’s crochet on the front cover but there’s rarely any inside of its pages, just a lot of (amazing) knitting patterns. I got a subscription for Christmas a couple of years ago. For the entire year, there was only one crochet pattern. Still, the pictures were pretty…. Fingers crossed some amazing crochet designs get featured soon. Come on Pompom, crochet is awesome!

Toft and Scheepjes both feature crochet in their seasonal magazines too. For the US, I’ve been told that Interweave is a good choice.

3. Clothes!

I got myself an early present in the form of a sweatshirt from Stitchers Tees. You can choose from hoodies and t-shirts as well. I love mine!

A sneak peek of a new cowl that’s coming out later in the week in issue 108 of Inside Crochet!!

4. Pins/Badges/Buttons etc

A fabulous stocking filler idea! Enamel pins are super popular right now. Try Joanne Hawker or Lanabou for craft related accessories. Crochet Luna has an impressive array of crochet buttons, many of which adorn my project bags. I also recently bought myself a pretty brooch from Shirley Rainbow. I know that it isn’t crochet but neither is the cross stitch bauble from Stitchsperation!! I don’t care, they’re still crafty and gorgeous!

Love my new cross stitch bauble from Stitchsperation. I went off piste with the design and did a free form Christmas tree.

5. Project bag.

Loads of makers on Etsy sell handmade bags you can store your crochet projects in. One that is most definitely on my Christmas list is a Floofhunta bag from the Yarnistry shop (navy medium or large with rose gold please!). Or, look at the beauty below from Handmade by Yael.

6. A pattern

You can buy patterns from an independent designer (like me!) all over the internet. These are mostly digital downloads, which you can choose to gift. You just need the email address of your crochet loving pal so it gets sent to them. Try Ravelry, Love Crochet or Etsy, and now there’s the Making Things app, which is a monthly subscription where a maker can get their hands on loooadds of crochet & knitting patterns. I’ll be finding out more about this soon; I’ll be sure to pass on the info.

7. A Fancy Hook

I always see people using Furls hooks, I’ve not tried one before but they’re supposed to be very good to use and ergonomic too, they’re like the designer hook, I guess. Or there are handmade hooks. I’ve seen beautiful hooks whittled from wood (want!). For example, drool over Knitbrooks twig hooks, and squee over Make.E’s hooks which are wrapped in funky Fimo designs.

8. Tickets to a Yarn Festival

There are yarn festivals all over the country and all over the world. Buy a pair of tickets. Day pass, weekend, whatever. Throw in a fancy hotel too! ;p

9. Stitch Markers/Progress Keepers

Another stocking filler. Lots of people make and sell these in online shops. You can quickly end up with a large collection!

10. Yarn Bowl

I’m not fussed about yarn bowls, I quite like my yarn bopping about all over the place as I work, but I know not everyone feels the same. Keep your woolly bits in check by keeping your balls in a bowl.

11. A Granny Square Print

Swoon! A Granny Square print from Kirsten Sevig

This is stunning! I love this so much! Such treasure. The artist is Kirsten Sevig of Striped Pear Studio. I love the sentiment behind it too. The original painting was made for a crochet loving friend of the artist. The friend, Susan, founded Granny Square Day over on Instagram!

12. A Workshop or Retreat

Workshops are wonderful things; fab community get-togethers for like minded makers where you learn a new skill. There will be a small business near you running crafty workshops. They’re great fun! Some will only be a couple of hours and cost just a few quid or you could splurge and book a weekend retreat for proper indulgent crochet time.

13. The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater

Books!! A book can be tricky because there are so many to choose from. Too many, even. Not every book will please every crocheter. Unless you know their style then it might be best to avoid a pattern book and go for memoirs instead. A few months ago I got The Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater it’s a collection of essays about being a crafter. It’s mostly knitting orientated but crochet gets a look in too. Having just looked on Amazon I can see a whole load of yarn related memoirs! A Stash on One’s Own sounds good…. eh, I don’t know if I want to go down this rabbit hole. Ooh, I remember getting Dead Men Don’t Crochet a while back, a crime/murder mystery that’s also about crochet. I couldn’t finish it, it was too daft but you might think it’s great! 😀

I’ve got to stop there I’m afraid. I know there are loads more ideas out there but I’m going to rein it in before I get carried away. Have I missed out of any obvious ones? Let me know! x

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C2C CAL: THE END!!!!

November 23, 2018crochet5 Comments

It’s done, it’s over. Step away from the crochet! … How do you feel?

For all my thoughts on the Corner to Corner Crochet Along 2018 please do check out the video (click the pic above) over on YouTube. I chat about what I made, what you made and who won prizes!

I have posted quite a bit on here about the CAL over the last couple of months, there are tonnes of ideas if you want to check them out. The original posts are HERE and HERE.

Thank you so much for joining in, it really does show what a fantastic community we have here. Below are plenty of lovely corner to corner pictures, showing the sort of thing people got up to. There are so many impressive projects here, really demonstrating the tricks one can get up to with this fab stitch! What do you think?

I will leave the vid up for a week before publishing the winners here and on Ravelry. I want it to be a surprise! If you watch and you find out that you’re a winner, please give me a shout and we’ll go from there, cheers ;p

Get yourself to the Ravelry threads and look at the #c2cCal18 hashtag on Insta to see all wonderful makes.

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Top: Crochetlovemelbourne, springintostitch, so_fie1974 Middle: aquabella_crafts, crafty_cc, jellybean_junction Bottom: Sewveehoo, poppyseedsbeads, claudiadingle

top: apapsa, jellybean_junction Bottom: hookonepurlone, craftycruella

Top: claudiadingle, crochetbyredagape Bottom: silvietonellotto, karen.rusticrose

Top: happyinred, knotsosquare, sweetsharna Middle: rebecca70au, teaandcrafting, crochetsmilla Bottom: Janinerosenke, 3littlepears, karen.rusticrose

Top: silvietonellotto, geertje1310 Bottom: thefridaymornings, iceflowercrochet

Top: jo_kill, birdhousestitches, crochyaylucy Middle: nikki_jaydub, silviwtonellotto, sweet_sharna Bottom: crochetteamumma, poppyseedsbeads, heartmade_by_silvia

Easy Crochet Slipper Socks

November 9, 2018March 27, 2023crochet, free pattern23 Comments

Crochet socks have a bad reputation but there are some amazing designs out there. I like to think of these cosy slipper socks as a good introduction to crocheting your own footwear. As socks go, they’re super easy. They use simple stitches and what with using aran weight yarn, they work up very quickly indeed.

Click on the pic above to go to the video tutorial. Find the written pattern below.

Before you read on, don’t forget to check out my other free crochet patterns. Thank you. x

Right, on with the good stuff…

These cosy crochet socks are made out of aran weight yarn, they’ll be comfy in wellies but probably not your posh shoes. Splodge some of that sticky stuff on the soles so that they turn into non-slip slipper socks. I always intended to buy some for these but never got round to it.

A word of advice: go for the Leader of the Pac yarn (or similar) rather than the Three Bears yarn, which I used in the tutorial. The latter has very little stretch and is also not as soft or squishy. The sock I made in that came up slightly smaller too. I’m also not convinced that you should go for 100% natural fibres for socks. They need to be made of something that won’t wear away as quickly so a splash of nylon or acrylic in the mix is not a bad thing.

Something else to note: accuracy is important for socks but I think these ones are more forgiving than ones made from finer yarn. However, it is definitely worth getting the measurements of the foot you’re making these socks for.

The Sock Pattern

Things you Need to Crochet these Socks

4.5mm hook (you may wish to go to a 5mm depending on your tension – my tension is normal to loose).
2 x 100g balls of main colour and scraps of contrasting colours. I used Hobbycraft Leader of the Pac (90% acrylic, 10% alpaca), aran weight (170m per 100g). My socks weigh 78 grams each.
In the video tutorial I used Three Bears Yarn 100% BFL, (80m per 50g). I don’t know if this is still available and I prefer the yarn for my original pair of socks anyway.

Crochet Abbreviations

BPtr = back post treble (US BPdc), Ch = chain, Ch-sp = chain space, Dc = double crochet (US single crochet), Dec = decrease, FPtr = front post treble (US FPdc), Htr = half treble (US half double crochet), Inc = increase, Rep = repeat, St(s) = stitch(es), Tr = treble (US double crochet).

Notes to Read before you get Started

The pattern is worked toe up.
The pattern is worked in the round.
The heel is a reverse of the toe rows.
The pattern is written is UK terms (see abbreviations for US equivalents).
A stitch marker may be useful to mark the beginning of rounds.
You might want to go down half a hook size to make the cuff for a better fit.
Follow along with my Easy Crochet Socks Video Tutorial.

Sock Sizing

This crochet pattern includes small, medium and large sizes. I made a Medium; I’m a shoe size UK 5/6 (US 7/8, EU 38/39).
Fun fact! There is 6mm between shoe sizes (3mm if you include half sizes!!).

Toe and Foot
With main colour chain 7
Rnd 1: 1dc in 2nd ch from hook, 1dc along to end, turn and work 6dc down other side of ch. [12 sts]
Rnd 2: 1dc, 1 inc, [1dc in next 2 st, 1 inc] three times, 1dc. [16]
Rnd 3: 1dc, 1 inc, 4dc, 1 inc, 2dc, 1 inc, 4dc, 1 inc, 1dc. [20]
Rnd 4: 1dc, 1 inc, 6dc, 1 inc, 2dc, 1 inc, 6dc, 1 inc, 1dc. [24]
Rnd 5: dc around
Rnd 6: 1dc, 1 inc, 8dc, 1 inc, 2dc, 1 inc, 8dc, 1 inc, 1dc. [28] For Small size go to Rnd 11
Rnd 7: dc around
Rnd 8: 1dc, 1 inc, 10dc, 1 inc, 2dc, 1 inc, 10dc, 1 inc, 1dc. [32] For Medium go to Rnd 11
Rnd 9: dc around
Rnd 10: 1dc, 1 inc, 12dc, 1 inc, 2dc, 1 inc, 12dc, 1 inc, 1dc. [36]. Change colour if desired.
Rnd 11 … : Htr in the round. Place stitch marker in first st, this will guide you when it comes to the ankle.
Continue to work htr sts in the round until the place where the heel will start (you will need to measure your foot for accuracy. From the first round of htr sts to the heel start I measured 12cm for Medium.

Ankle
Begin at the sock side (work up to where it aligns with toe and stitch marker)
14, 16, 18 htr, ch 14 (16, 18), miss 14 (16, 18) sts and rejoin with a htr in next st, continue htr st until desired length (from this point mine measure 16cm including contrast colours). Slip stitch in final st and fasten off.

Cuff
Rnd 1: 2ch (does not count as a st), 1 tr in same st, 1tr around, join with a slip st to the first st. [28, 32, 26]
Rnd 2: 2ch, *1FPtr, 1BPtr; rep from * around, join with a slip st to the first st.
Rnd 3: Repeat Rnd 2. Fasten off.

Heel
Join yarn to one corner of the heel space 28 (32, 36) sts around.
Go to Rnd 1 for Large, Rnd 3 for Medium, Rnd 5 for Small

Rnd 1: 1dc, 1 dec, 12dc, 1 dec, 2dc, 1 dec, 12dc, 1 dec, 1dc. [32]
Rnd 2: dc around
Rnd 3: 1dc, 1 dec, 10dc, 1 dec, 2dc, 1 dec, 10dc, 1 dec, 1dc. [28]
Rnd 4: dc around
Rnd 5: 1dc, 1 dec, 8dc, 1 dec, 2dc, 1 dec, 8dc, 1 dec, 1dc. [24]
Rnd 6: dc around
Rnd 7: 1dc, 1 dec, 6dc, 1 dec, 2dc, 1 dec, 6dc, 1 dec, 1dc. [20]
Rnd 8: 1dc, 1 dec, 4dc, 1 dec, 2dc, 1 dec, 4dc, 1 dec, 1dc. [16]
Rnd 9: 1dc, [1 dec, 2dc] three times, 1 dec, 1dc. [12]

Turn your socks inside out a sew gap of heel closed and sew in ends.

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Christmas Crochet Socks

Check out the picture below. These are also using Leader of the Pac yarn. I worked 3 or 4 additional rounds before working the cuff.

The Holly leaf motif is from Attic 24. I still used an aran weight yarn but it has no halo so worked up a tad smaller than if I’d used the same yarn. I also went down a couple of hook sizes for the leaves and berries.

The berries are 6htr sts worked into a magic ring and joined with a slip stitch. Make sure you leave tails so you can stitch them to your socks.

holly5

xxx

Zeens and Roger Crochet Podcast 41.

November 3, 2018crochet, vlogging3 Comments

Howdy! Welcome to episode 41 of the Zeens and Roger crochet podcast. Click on the pic to go to the episode or go HERE to YouTube for all the episodes and crochet tutorials.

Links and pics:

C2C Crochet Along links: The Main Blog Post, The Other Blog Post, The Chatter Thread, The Finished Object thread

Qing Fibre

Bhooked C2C podcast episode with Make and Do Crew

Blacker Yarns Tamar Lustre Blend

Crochet Luna badges

HomeFire Ridge Etsy shop

The Tar Barrels: A great article HERE, Check out the action HERE (it’s a slow burner this video but it pretty much demonstrates what it’s all about). For a quicker burst of action, take a look HERE

Stitchers Tees: jumpers, t-shirts project bags etc…

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Zeens & Roger Crochet Podcast. Episode 40!

October 20, 2018crochet, vloggingLeave a Comment

Episode 40?! 40??? How did that happen? Sounds like quite a lot! Click on the pic above to go to the episode (which is chock full of crochet goodness, by the way) or HERE to my YouTube channel. Please remember to Like and Subscribe!! ;p Cheers.

Don’t forget that Harvest Moon and all my C2C patterns have 20% off at the moment.

Links and stuff:

Harvest Moon shawl

Havana Nights C2C blanket

ZZ Block C2C blanket

Free spider pattern and tutorial (for it is soon to be Hallowe’en!)

C2C CAL 2018

Segue Socks by Addydae Designs

Leader of the Pac aran alpaca from Hobbycraft

Knitcrate subscriptions

Nordic Noir/Hinterland is in Mollie Makes issue 98

xxx

ZZ Block C2C Blanket Pattern

October 19, 2018blanket, crochet4 Comments

I wasn’t expecting to talk about this corner to corner blanket quite so soon; only one day after releasing my new crochet shawl pattern, Harvest Moon, I’ve just added ZZ Block to Ravelry! Phew, it’s getting a bit crochet crazy here at the minute.

Until the 17th of November it has 20% off. That’s the date the C2C CAL 2018 ends!! It’s only a couple of quid anyway, so you’re getting two fab charts for not very much at all. Yes, two! I have included a secret bonus chart too!! It’s called Ziggy, so you might be able to guess what that looks like…

RAVELRY IS THIS WAY… →

Yesterday, I posted a pic of this graphgan blanket on Instagram and instantly loads of phone friends said I should release it as a pattern. There was also mass agreement that it’d be OK to just release the charts. So, let me be clear, this is a chart only pattern. No written instructions for the C2C stitch are included (but you can find those in loads of places, can’t you?). This means confident crocheters can get their mitts on it straight away without having to wait for me to make up a new sample. There is, however, a full page of notes and advice on measurements and yarn.

I made it super fast. There was lots of car crochet going on last weekend and it was mostly made en route to see my family. Because I made it so quickly and because I was in a car with loads of tangled balls upon my person, I made the error of “rectangling” it about 4 rows too soon. I also rushed the initial design and it doesn’t please me 100%. The bungling, therefore, means that I can’t produce a whole pattern without a perfect sample. But I don’t want to stop others from starting now. Give me some time and a full-on pattern will be released but for now, I think this is a good alternative.

The inspiration is this bolt of rainbow lightning in my boys bedroom. We* painted it around Easter and ever since then I’ve known it would some day become a blanket. I’ve just about manage to squeeze it in for the current CAL.

*by “we” I mean, I told the husband to paint it.

I do hope you like it.

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Harvest Moon. New Crochet Shawl Pattern

October 18, 2018October 18, 2018crochet6 Comments

Harvest Moon, a crochet shawl for the autumn is now live!! Huzzah!

available on Ravelry HERE. Get 20% off until November 1st 2018.

It is the second shawl design for what I plan on being a four parter to celebrate the seasons. The first was a filet wrap called Emergence of Spring, and the next will probably be called Waking Winter (which I’m desperate to get started on but it’s about five down on my list of things to do). Thematically they will be linked through my tinkerings with filet crochet. I haven’t thought of a design for the summer yet but I have bought yarn!

Harvest Moon is a pretty, crescent shaped shawl with lacy edging. The edging is similar to (but not the same as) its spring cousin. When I first started talking about it on my crochet podcast there was mixed feedback about the two colour striping. The answer was to make one with three stripes too…

Fancy a better look at the shawls? You might be interested in watching Episode 37 (from the ten minute mark. Skip to 16.15 for the three colour version).

For the first time ever I have UK and US versions of the pattern (Find & Replace is my new best friend). The pattern includes instructions for both the two and three stripe shawls. And you can choose to make it in large or small. That’s four choices in one pattern! (My blue one is a small and reaches half way down my back. The other one is the large and skims my bum).

I bought John Arbon Knit by Numbers for my shawls, it’s a fluffy, warm, 4ply merino that is beautifully warm. Having seen what the awesome pattern testers have used [thank you, guys!], I’d say that there are many alternative yarns that would work really well too. Check out the hashtag #harvestmoonshawl on Insta to see some examples.

For now, I think I’m crescented out! Between these two and Rapture, I’m going back to triangle shawls, rectangular blankets and randomly shaped accessories. Keep your eyes peeled ;p

Loads of pictures below, keep scrolling. x

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C2C CAL Kick Off!! – Havana Nights is LIVE!!

October 7, 2018October 20, 2018crochet5 Comments

It is the start off the Corner to Corner Crochet Along!! Huzzah! 3…. 2…. 1…. GOOOOOOO!!

To celebrate these exciting times, get yourself over to Ravelry for 20% off all my Corner to Corner designs, including Havana Nights!! It is live!!

Havana Nights Blanket

ZZ Block (& Ziggy)

Geo Rainbow Blanket

Geo Rainbow Bag

C2C Geo (non Rainbow!) Bag

Off the Chart blanket

You don’t need a coupon code, the discount is automatically applied to these specific patterns. The discount ends on the 17th of November, which is the last day of the CAL.

Don’t forget that I’ve just released a freebie too. It is the Apres-Ski set and you can find it HERE.

If you missed the original C2C CAL post then go HERE, you’ll find loads and loads of inspiration, stuff about rules (there aren’t many), and let’s not forget PRIZES!!

You can play with charts on Stitchfiddle.com (not an affiliate thing, I just like it)

So, get c2c-ing and I’ll be doing the same. I have ideas for two projects, possibly three… I wonder if I can squeeze them all in!? What are you going to make? Get chatting over on the Ravelry thread where you can share your ideas and what you’re up to! Remember, you can make anything you like as long as it’s corner to corner! Let’s have 6 weeks of C2C fun!

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Free Pattern recipe for the Hotchpotch C2C bag.

My favourite blanket, Havana Nights, claimed by my favourite girl.

xxx

C2C Cowl & Hat. A Free Crochet Pattern

September 27, 2018January 29, 2023crochet, free pattern14 Comments

Just a heads up, I got the yarn for this pattern for free from Hobbii. During some correspondence I asked if they’d been interested in collaborating in my Corner 2 Corner CAL. Rather happily, they said yes! How great is that!? They are going to give away four balls of Happy Sheep wool as one of the CAL prizes!! OK, on with the show…

As part of the C2C crochet along that I’m hosting this autumn, I thought it’d be a nice idea to have a free pattern on the table. When I first mentioned the idea of a CAL a lot of people told me that they’d not tried the C2C stitch before. I think a few people had tried it and were put off by the (only slightly) weird start (honestly, you get over it pretty quickly!). I decided a free pattern might coerce these fab people into giving C2C another chance. I thought that a video tutorial to accompany it might persuade a few others too…

Here we have a cowl and a hat using 4 x100g balls of aran weight yarn. The colours and pattern have a funny eighties vibe about them; I’m thinking shell suits and ski jackets, therefore the name of this set is Apres-Ski! I made the cowl first, had loads of yarn left over so thought I’d better squeeze in a hat too. Follow the same chart for the cowl and the hat. For the cowl you just sew up the rectangle (I used mattress stitch) and for the hat, you add some FP/BP stitches along the bottom and gather the top. Easy peasy!

The design is pretty simple, uncomplicated colour changes an no carrying of yarn. That’s not too bad, right?! I drew up the chart on Stitch Fiddle. It’s a been a few years since I stumbled upon Stitch Fiddle and since I’ve been using it, it has become much much better and more advanced. Seeing as it’s a free programme, this is fantastic [and before you question my motives, I am not affiliated with the site, I just use it a lot and like it]. The chart is below but I think I can also share it via Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, so I’ll do that too.

Notes & Things you need to Crochet

5mm hook
4x colours aran weight yarn. I used 4x 100g balls of Happy Sheep Woolpower
Needle for sewing in ends
Not much time. These things are super speedy!
Optional: 10cm pompom maker
Pattern is written in UK terms but in the video I use both UK & US speak. A UK treble = US double
I changed my colours around a bit but if you want both hat and cowl to be identical, there should be just enough yarn of your chosen main colour to do that.
Find the video tutorial HERE
Once complete the rectangle measures 19x53cm

C2C Crochet Cowl Pattern

Row 1: 6 ch, 1 tr in 4th ch from hook, 1 tr in next 2 st, turn. [1 block]

Row 2: 6 ch, 1 tr in 4th ch from hook, 1 tr in next 2 st, ss into the 3 ch-sp of previous row, 3 ch, 3 tr into same 3 ch-sp, turn. [2 blocks]

Row 3: 6 ch, 1 tr into 4th ch from hook, 1 tr in next 2 st, *ss into next 3 ch-sp of previous row, 3 ch, 3 tr in same 3 ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn. [3 blocks etc]

Row 4 -11: Continue increasing as Row 3

Row 12: Repeat Row 3, ending with 1 ss in the last 3 ch-sp (ie. do not make the last block), turn.

Row 13: Ss along the next 3 st and into the first 3 ch-sp, (3 ch, 3 tr) in same ch-sp, continue making blocks in each 3 ch-sp to the end, turn.

Repeat Rows 12 & 13 until Row 28.

Row 29: Ss along the next 3 st and into the first 3 ch-sp, (3 ch, 3 tr) in same ch sp, continue making blocks, end with 1 ss into the last 3 ch-sp, turn.

Rep Row 29 to end. To finish ss across the last 3st and into the corner. Fasten off.

Mattress stitch the ends together and voila! A cowl is made!

Turning it into a Hat

Round 1: Attach your chosen colour to any stitch along the bottom and chain 3 to count as your first st. Make 2tr into the horizontal bars and 1tr into each of the 3 vertical stitches of the blocks (see hastily hand drawn chart below). Double check you have an even number of stitches. I had 70st.

Round 2. 2ch (doesn’t count as a st), *1 front post tr, 1 back post tr; rep from * around and join to the first st, no turn.

Rounds 3 & 4. Repeat Row 2

Fasten off. With a needle and yarn, gather the other opening to close. Attach a pompom (please watch Episode 39 of my podcast where I make the pompom and sew it on to the hat, as I chat).

Slightly embarrassing …but I’m pretending to hold a ski pole!

And before I go I just wanted to say thanks to Hobbii, they have been great. The emails we exchanged felt really friendly and warm. They were totally up for coming on board the CAL and I got a free row counter (and sweeties!) in my parcel!

I’d love to see your makes. Tag me on Instagram @zeensandroger and if you’re joining in with the CAL, don’t forget to use the hashtag #c2cCAL18

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hatcowl ;p

Corner to Corner Crochet Along 2018

September 24, 2018November 10, 2018crochet15 Comments

Hello and welcome!! You must be here because you quite like the idea of making something with corner to corner crochet…

Havana Nights. My absolute favourite blanket!!

This is the second Crochet Along that I’ve hosted, it was so much fun the first time that I’ve decided to do another one! The first CAL was back in February and it was the Granny CAL 2018. Looking back I can see that I already mentioned the possibility of a C2C CAL and here it is!! Yay!

If you’re wondering what a CAL is then you’ll be delighted to hear that I wrote a blog post all about them. It’s HERE if you’d like to read more. I wrote it in March, so there’s some outdated info about the specific CALs mentioned but if you get stuck into the online crochet community you’ll never be far from one, I guarantee it! (current or soon to be starting CALs include a general one by Jodi & Tracey of the Grocery Girls , Hannah is hosting a Nerdalong and Fay, Claudia et al have a SockAlong).

The Geo Rainbow bag featured in Inside Crochet’s celebratory birthday issue earlier this year. Find the pattern over on Ravelry.

The Details

The CAL is six weeks long. Day one is Sunday the 7th of October 2018 and the final day is Sunday 18th November. I’ll close everything on the Monday. I have already opened a chatter thread on Ravelry so if you want to get the talk started early then pop over and say hello, share ideas etc. I’ll open a finished objects thread after the start date.

To join in, all you have to do is pop pictures up of your C2C work on Instagram and/or the Ravelry threads. That’s pretty much it. How much you join in with the chat is up to you.

The aim is to have fun and maybe try something you’ve not tried before. C2C is great for stash busting, fantastic for quick gifts, and once you get going you can really pick up speed and make something in a flash, honest! You can keep it simple or get yourself in a proper tangle by working with lots of different colours at the same time. There are so many (too many?) ways you can adopt this stitch. Honestly, I don’t think we can squeeze it all in here. Join as you go? All in one (my fave)? Stitch pieces together? Ach! So. Much. Choice…

For Instagram entries don’t forget to use #c2cCAL18

My Hotchpotch C2C. Find the recipe on my Free Patterns page.

The Patterns

I would suggest that your first port of call is Pinterest. I’ve set up a board especially and I’m going to keep adding pretty pictures as often as I can. There are free patterns and paid patterns to be found. I’ve also added how-to’s and top tips. Essentially it’s all things C2C in one place. Go and check it out, I think there will be patterns and ideas that surprise you!

Especially for the CAL I have a free pattern available right here on the blog, it’s called Apres-Ski and it’s HERE . There is a written pattern, chart and video tutorial. I showed the first part of the design on my latest podcast HERE . If you want to learn the absolute basics try Bella Coco for her video tutorials. And Mandy from Crochet RedAgape has a great photo tutorial HERE

Also, rather cheekily, may I point you in the direction of my Ravelry store?! I have a few C2C patterns for sale and during the CAL they will have a 20% discount applied (keep your eyes peeled for that). Havana Nights (my absolute favourite blanket design to date) is released on the first day of the CAL. It appeared in Crochet Now magazine a few months ago and I love it! It has 14 different colours of acrylic dk (just mentioning that in case you wanted to make it and prep your colours in advance!)

Don’t forget that you can make your own design too! Get some graph paper and play around with patterns. Or use online software such as Stitch Fiddle. It’s one I use for C2C ideas. It’s free and you can make grids that are especially for C2C!

I also have a couple of designs for free HERE.

The Rules

As long as it’s corner to corner it really can be any stitch. The majority of patterns you’ll see are like the pictures I have here but I’ve seen corner to corner grannies and moss/linen stitch. Use you imagination. Likewise, you can kinda go corner to middle, then stop, if you wanted to make a shawl. I’m OK with that.

When you begin the CAL please make sure your project isn’t just three stitches from the end. If you’re joining in, you’re eligible to be entered into the prize draws. It wouldn’t be fair if someone else was making a blanket from scratch and you’d already completed 75% of your project. Let’s say anything 50% done (or less) will be accepted.

Double dipping is allowed (I’m trying to work out if I can c2c half decent socks….hmm…)

The Prizes

Oh, this is going to be so exciting! There are lots of categories and therefore lots of chances of winning a wonderful prize. There will be digital patterns, yarn and accessories. There are lots of things lined up that I think you’ll like a lot!

Categories include random draws from the Raverly chatter thread, finished object thread and Instagram. There will also be a prize for my favourite comment from the chatter thread (I like things that make me laugh!), my favourite finished object, and from IG, my fave picture (note that I said picture, not just what it is you’ve made. Play around with the composition of your image, experiment with flatlay, stuff like that.).

At this point I need to say a huge huge huge thank you to all those who are donating prizes. This includes: Shirley Rainbow, Lottie & Albert, Jellybean Junction, Raspberry Crochet, Hobbii, Crochet Luna, The Cozy Cottage Crochet, Keep Calm and Crochet On, Dear Ewe, Yarn & Blarney, and possibly more as the CAL moves forward.