Hallooooo! Welcome to the Zeens and Roger crochet podcast. This is episode 91. Hopefully all the good stuff is here but I did have recording issues. I lost some video but most of it was safe. I think I will need to find an alternative method because the camera I bought especially for podcasting is not good enough!! Bah.
Aaaaanyway, it’s lovely to have you here,I hope you’re well? To watch this fabulous crochet podcast, please click on the picture above, or go here to my YouTube channel.
Links to the crochet latest:
Moorit magazine. I will talk about the name next time. It’s a fun story! How excited are you for Moorit magazine!!!?
The Granny Go Round jumper is finally complete and I LOVE it!!! It’s a pattern by Claudine of Iron Lamb.
The Perfect Cardigan! I am super proud of my very first garment release. It was A LOT of hard work and even more learning new skills!! You can read about it HERE. I’ve written up the Ravelry notes HERE for my crazy mohair version, which to be honest, is my new favourite thing! I have added the notes because I made adjustments. I could probably have just made a size smaller than in the pattern and it would have been fine.
I used MYPZ chunky mohair to make the floofy mohair version of the Perfect Cardigan. Super nice yarn and I want more! Not sure if I can justify the stash build but I’m sure I will find a reason.
The cobalt mohair is Drops Kid Silk, a budget lace weight yarn. This brand is perfect if you’re on a budget. I bought mine from Wool Warehouse.
Another yarn discussed are Kingcole Cottonsoft It’s pretty much the only cotton (so far) that I like using!
What I didn’t talk about and wanted to bring up was Patreon. If you would like to support my crochet adventures and join a really fun community, check it out. I am sporadic with my postings but I share behind the scenes stuff and the different tiers all have different treats n stuff.
FYI there are a couple of affiliate links used in this post. It’s no extra cost to you, it just means I get a small percentage of the cost of any yarn you buy through the links.
Playing with colourful cakes or balls of wool is up there as one of the most satisfying things about yarn crafts. I’m sure you’d agree that colourful crochet can put a smile on anyone’s face! But having to decide which shades to add to a new crochet project can be mega stressful too. How on earth do you choose the best hues to have?! It can be a bit of a head scratcher, especially if the doubt creeps in. But, please! Don’t be afraid of the big beautiful wool, learn how to play with it instead!!
I wrote a fairly decent blog post about how to choose colour in crochetback in 2016 and I’ve just read it. It still stands and I’m pretty pleased about that. However, since 2016 my palette has definitely evolved. In that post I mention about going for random selections of colour and yep, you can definitely see that that was what I was doing. I was clearly going through an Ugly Granny phase too. Not a bad thing.
I have learned an enormous amount from playing with random colour palettes, which has been, hands down, the best part of my crochet adventure!
So how has it evolved from there? The short answer is I dunno, it just happened! Hmm, what about a longer answer that might actually be helpful?
Colour Evolution
My crochet adventures started in 2010 without much of a clue. Colour consideration wasn’t top of the list. I was too busy darting into yarn shops; grabbing balls in a panic! I didn’t belong and didn’t want to outstay my welcome. What a way to start a mindful hobby! It’s obviously absolute nonsense but I know others feel the same. That’s just anxiety talking, stamp that sucker down and be proud.
[OMG! Side moment: the penny has just dropped about why I was making Ugly Grannies! It was all the panic bought yarn being used up! Not quite the same mentality as my Nanna’s make do & mend approach, but kind of similar… Aaannyway…]
After a lot of years mucking about with different yarns I realized that I have two very definite colour personalities and I am so happy about that. My ultimate goal is to tinker and play to see where a mash up of both might lead. I love modern brights, love em! They are great in smooth merinos and fluffy mohair, and let’s not forget; perfect for top quality acrylics but I am also head over heels for natural tones and yarns too. I need toothy wool with bits of straw, and it’s exciting to use yarn when I know it has been spun just up the road from me. Just because I love crazy brights doesn’t mean I can’t also love an undyed alpaca. Natural, earthy colours aren’t boring, they are classics to be revered. They are the cool kids; the brights are kawaii cute.
What I will say is don’t expect to have it down pat right from the start. Using colour in your craft means having a certain amount an expressive freedom and you need to explore that to discover what works for you. I have always been guided by my mood, by the seasons and by what everyone else is up to. Who isn’t?! Trends have a role to play in this whether you like it or not. We absorb fashions like osmosis, we’re all influenced whether we know it, or not.
Essentially, it’s about getting knee deep in a lifelong experiment of matching colour with crochet. If you want.
The Grainbow Shawl
The Basic Principles of Colour in Crochet
The nutshell version: it’s all about balance.
You want to know more? Um, I’m not sure how to expand on the original blog post where I say balance warm with cool, and light with dark. Balance out your brights with a neutral, plop in a navy amongst your pastels. If you don’t want to bung them anywhere, think about their placement, even distribution is a safe bet.
If you use these principles as a basic starting point you won’t go far wrong. In 2016 I hadn’t refined the colour palettes I was using, instead, I just chucked all the balls in the air to see what landed where. Sometimes literally. Now I like to think my choices are more deliberate.
Whilst (arguably) using more polished palettes in 2021 I am not a fan of too many rules. Therefore, please don’t feel like you have to dutifully follow some strict formula. Ultimately, go with your gut. If it works for you and it makes you happy, then that’s a winner!
And just to contradict myself with another side note, I do have one rule when working with colour for crochet. The stitches of crochet don’t always look their best in colour-pooling yarns. Where this might create brilliant stripes in knitting, it creates a blocky pixel in crochet and I’m not keen. I will always bear that in mind if purchasing a non solid colour base.
Havana Nights C2C blanket.
Put it into Practice
I like big stripes of crazy colour combos but also a whole hotchpotch of them fighting each other too. If in doubt, try this: use your go to shades but swap out just one samey ball of colour for one that you’d not normally go for. Nothing bad will happen, honest! If you’re feeling queasy about diving straight in make a swatch first. Then perhaps make a smaller project like a bag or hat. Big blankets and garments can follow later.
This is part of a process, a journey if you like (ugh, I hate that word!). It’s not an overnight change.
Obviously Instagram is a great source of inspiration and I love to mindlessly scroll through Pinterest too but you’ll find it in nature, architecture and places you hadn’t even thought of.
The Perfect Cardigan
As long as you remember that it’s all about balance then you won’t go far wrong. Also, use of colour in crochet is totally subjective! What I think looks awesome isn’t going to work for everyone. There are times when I’m not fussed about that thing other people say is the bees knees. It really doesn’t matter. Conversely, someone else will put together a crochet colour palette that will blow my mind! I wish that I’d come up with it! Wistful envy pops up to say hello but I try to remind myself that others feel that way about my dodgy choices sometimes too! A full circle of different ideas.
Each time you put a load of shades together you’ve learned more about what works and what doesn’t. And if nothing else it’s a very good excuse to buy more yarn. Keep going.
How to Crochet a Bucket Hat: click the pic for the YouTube tutorial
A Crochet Bucket Hat
The promise of summer is here! To celebrate, how about a crochet hat pattern!? Using just one roll of raffia, you can make a straw hat that’s perfect for protecting yourself from summer sun.
An impulse purchase has led to me having a roll of Wool and the Gang’s Ra Ra Raffia sat in my stash for about two years. I thought that one day inspiration might strike for it to become a cute clutch or little tote. Nope, it was a hat that won out in the end. This was due to some fine weather that was forecast for last weekend. A beachy time in Cornwall beckoned and I needed a hat! Alas, the hat wasn’t finished in time for Cornwall; such a shame because photos against a backdrop of sandy beaches would have looked awesome (although I did get some fab photos of my Perfect Cardigan)! Actually one version of the hat did get finished in time but I ended up frogging it half way down the A30. It was too big.
The tangled ball of papery yarn did not look quite so fancy anymore. Thankfully, it worked just as well after being ripped back. With some tweaks and adjustments, the second hat was completed yesterday and it fits like a dream!
Frogging on the A30
Seeing as I’m off work this week I have found some time to film a crochet hat tutorial and write up the crochet pattern. It’s called the Bucket hat because that is exactly what it is! Other name suggestions were “Kick the Bucket” and “Bargain Bucket.” Not sure either of those are the best names though…. What about the Blossom Bucket? Did you watch Blossom on telly back in the 90’s?! That’s a blast from the past!
Yesterday was a beautifully sunny day so me and the boys took a stroll down to the river for a few snap shots. The eldest was paid a few quid to be a photographer for me. Unfortunately, there aren’t many river pics included here because the river’s beaches were busy with loads of people. There was lots of joyous laughter and cheerful frolics going on. Those guys were definitely making the most of the first day of June.
The boy did a great job as chief photographer; he didn’t seem to mind when more shots and more angles were demanded. But I guess you don’t want a massively long story and to be honest, it doesn’t need one. So here follows the pattern….
Next book on the reading list. Haven’t started it yet.
To make a bucket hat, you need:
1 roll of Ra Ra Raffia in Desert Palm (affiliate link).
4mm hook
Stitch marker or 2.
Notes & tips
The pattern is written in UK terms but, honestly, it’s dead easy to convert: UK htr stitch = US hdc. UK dc = US sc.
My head measures 57cm – about average I guess…
Every two stitches measures approx 1cm.
You can make a hat smaller by missing out the last increase round, this will reduce the size by 4 sts.
You can make your hat bigger by working an extra (4 st) increase round.
Raffia has a bit of stretch to it. If it feels slightly tight at first, worry not, it will give after wear.
Made top down, the hat is worked as a spiral, increasing as you go.
Use the stitch marker to note the first st of each round, move after each round.
Rnd 3: *1 inc, 1htr; work from * 8 times – 24 sts.
Rnd 4: *1 inc, 2htr; work from * 8 times – 32 sts.
Rnd 5: *1 inc, 3htr; work from * 8 times – 40 sts.
Rnd 6: *1 inc, 4htr; work from * 8 times – 48 sts.
Rnd 7: *1 inc, 5htr; work from * 8 times – 56 sts.
Rnd 8: *1 inc, 6htr; work from * 8 times – 64 sts.
Rnd 9: *1 inc, 15htr; work from * 4 times – 68 sts.
Rnd 10: *1 inc, 16htr; work from * 4 times – 72 sts.
Rnd 11: *1 inc, 17htr; work from * 4 times – 76 sts.
Rnd 12: *1 inc, 18htr; work from * 4 times – 80 sts.
Rnd 13 – 22: htr around with no increases.
Rnd 23: Repeat rnd 3 – 120 sts.
Rnd 24- 27: htr around with no increases. (Any more rounds than this and the brim will curl in on itself).
Finish by making 3dc stitches followed by 3 slip stitches. Fasten off and weave in ends.
Half way hat. Before the brim was started. Finger indicates last increase round.Crochet Bucket HatSide view of a crochet bucket hat.
And That’s it!
Such a quick and easy hat to crochet! You can wear it with the brim turned up or turned down. I added four rounds to the brim in the end. However, it did look good with just three rounds. Try playing around with different rounds to see which you prefer. This sort of hat is very forgiving (I am a big fan of forgiving crochet, it hides a multitude of sins!).
OK, I think that’s it for now. I will let the photographs below do the talking. But before you scroll on, if you enjoyed this fabulous pattern, please support my crochet work bybuying me a Ko-fi or, check out my Free Patterns page. Cheers x
Don’t forget to share your makes on Instagram #zeensandroger
Subscribe to Blog via Email
Crochet a hat for summerNot quite BlossomCrochet Bucket HatTiny dot of a buzzardMaking hay whilst the sun shinesZeens and Roger crochet bucket hat
Made it this far? Haha, well done!! But also, thank you. xxx
This is Quayside, a modern, contemporary crochet shawl that I designed last year.
Back in the summer there was a Call for Submissions from Wool on the Exe, a yarn shop in Exeter. Crocheters and knitters were asked to come up with designs that would be collated and turned into a book. The brief was to come up with concepts relating to all things Devon. I loved this, it immediately sparked lots of ideas and crochet inspiration!
My design was inspired by Exeter Quay. It’s a popular meeting place for noisy nights out, or a quiet stroll on a sunny Sunday morning. The solid striped sections of the shawl/wrap represent the paths alongside the grey waters of the river Exe. I added houndstooth stitches to reflect the movement of the water. When I was at uni I hung out at the Quay quite a lot. Mostly getting drunk and staggering around on a Saturday night (cobbles don’t make it easy to walk. Neither does knocking back too many beers). But then later it was more about strolling on a Sunday with a teeny baby in a pram. I don’t live in Exeter itself anymore but I’m still not that far away.
The book was released last year and is full of crochet, knitting and other yarn related projects. Proceeds went to Knit for Peaceand local community projects.
Chosen Charities
Quayside is now available to purchase as an individual pattern on Ravelry and Etsy. It will also be on Lovecrafts in a day or two as well. As it was initially for a charity enterprise, it’s only fitting that it continues to raise money for causes that need support. Therefore, I have chosen two charities and will donate £2.00 to each, per sale of Quayside. I hadn’t worked out precise platform fees when I posted on Instagram this morning so originally stated £1.50. I needed to make sure I could cover those fees. Thankfully, I still can!
The two charities I’ve chosen are for very good reasons. The first charity is CALM (the campaign against living miserably). Last year my step sister’s son, Adam died by suicide. Very sadly, my step sister is not the only mother I know who lost a son to suicide last year. If we can help another young man, any man, any person from feeling like that that’s their only escape, well, that’s good! It is Mental Health Week this week, which feels like appropriate timing for the pattern’s release.
The second charity is the Disasters Emergency Committee. Covid 19 is devasting India right now and help is desperately needed. The decision for this choice was cemented when someone told me the other day that “they had brought it upon themsleves” Um, what?! I’m still stuck for words on this.
You can also donate directly to either charity. If you’ve got a few extra quid, I urge you to do so, please. Ta very much!
Let’s see how it goes. Certainly, I will stick to this plan throughout the summer and then see how it goes from there. Hope that sounds OK? Let me know what you think!
Let’s do a Crochet Along!
Also to continue across the summer, how about a CAL?! It has been a while since I ran acrochet along and this seems like a good reason! The Quayside CAL! If you would like to take part, all you need to do is purchase the pattern and get cracking!
The idea is that you’re making a fab crochet shawl at the same time as lots of other makers. You are helping to raise money, for not one, but two charities! There are no real CAL rules, just choose your favourite yarn and a matching hook. Use the hashtag #QuaysideCAL and I will share your crochet progress and projects whenever I can. I’ll definitely want to write a follow up post here, and I’ll post on Insta over the next few months. I’ll say a provisional end date of September 1st but flexibilty is fine by me. Crochet is supposed to be mindful, it actually helps with mental health, it’d be silly to have tight deadlines.
You can use pretty much any yarn but perhaps nothing heavier than a DK or it’ll be huuuge! My version is made usingGwlan Cambrain wool, a woolly 4 ply. You can also buy it from Wool on the Exe (I’d better mention that as they’re the team who chose the yarn for the project!).
Right, I think that’s it for now. If you have any questions, add them in the comments and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Thanks ever so much. x
Subscribe to Blog via Email
Snapshot. I didn’t have time for proper photos yesterday – sorry!
Halloooo! How are you? I hope you are very well indeed. I’m a bit achey on my arm as I had my second Pfizer jab yesterday. Luckily I don’t feel too grotty today. Aaannnyway, let’s talk about crochet! Fancy a crochet catch up!?
For Episode 88 of the Zeens and Roger Crochet Podcast, please hit the pic above or go to my YouTube channel to find all the podcasts and tutorials.
A link to episode 87 is here (in case you wanted to do a comparison of pre and post blocking of my green jumper). I’ve linked to the notes as there are suggestions for similar patterns – none of which, I’ve made. But they might be up your street.
Fun Crochet Things:
Paintbox Worsted superwash wool. This is an affiliate link that, with no extra cost to you, can get me a small percentage of the cost. It’s the usual fabulous colour palette that I really enjoy playing around with.
I briefly mentioned Moorit. If you caught that and wondered what I was on about then go HERE.
I am making not one, but twoGranny Go Round jumpers!! I’ve enjoyed making them so far. They are winners! Although I’d forgotten I’d actually talked about them a little bit last episode, oops!
If you would like to have a look at my other work, there’s a Free Patterns page here on the blog. You can also go to Ravelry, Etsy, Lovecrafts and / orRibblr.
Other places you can find me:Instagram,Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter. These last two, hmm, I read tweets but rarely tweet myself. I use FB to share the latest videos and blog posts. I also share any interesting articles I’ve found online.
As a full on crochet addict I am always on the look out for fun items that are related to my favourite craft. I’ve got a nice collection of project bags, buttons and pins, even mugs that are clear indicators of my stitchy status but sometimes there’s not a lot of choice out there. Instead, images and ideas often come flitting in and out of my head for ways to come up with my own creations. Most things end up as a bit of a dream, or the project gets pushed back to the bottom of the list. Crochet cross stitch patterns have been on there for a while (I WILL get round to doing these, they’re half made already!). Exploring different crafts, yet staying true to my first love pleases me greatly.
The latest bright spark of an idea are these printed greeting cards. I’ve shocked myself by actually pulling my finger out and sorting them out, ready for release! I did it! There are real life granny square print cards for sale of Etsy!! I LOVE them!! The link will take you to a set of four but they are also available individually.
If you’re a Patron you get a nice discount on the set. GoHERE to Patreonto find out more. x
I’ve had a printing kit for a while and have, over the years, half halfheartedly messed about with the carving tools without getting very good. That isn’t enough to stop me from having a go though. In my kit I have multiple blades for cutting, shaving and gouging pieces of negative space from small lino sheets you can buy online. There’s also printing ink and a roller. The intricate motifs you can achieve from hand cut prints is amazing. I’m pretty bad at it yet I still get results that make me super happy. I like the imperfections and (in my case) rudimentary qualities. It’s not supposed to be perfect, that’s not the point. Have you tried lino cuts/printing before? It’s very satisfying.
Because I couldn’t find anything to buy that fit the bill, over the Christmas holidays I started playing with ways of drawing, painting and printing crochet granny squares. This is when I dug down deep into the craft cupboard to retrieve the printing kit. It’s not easy, I sliced though parts of the lino I didn’t want to slice through, or hacked off chunks that shouldn’t have been hacked off. Also, being a lazy creature, I went for abstract crochet stitches rather than go for precise realism. The idea of hand drawing every single twist of a stitch, getting perfect symmetry throughout? No, thanks, haven’t got the patience.
There have been a few incarnations. The one below is one of my first attempts at a granny print. It’s OK. I like it but it’s a bit rough. I was going to sell those ones as originals but there was a needling feeling that they weren’t quite good enough. I tried again. Second time around and everything is sooooo much better, I’m tremendously pleased with the balance of inky silhouette granny and rainbow colours. I had learned from the first goes to get the paint smoother and pay a bit more attention to carving the print (whilst still being lazy of course). And this time I felt they were good. I’m really proud of them. So much so I took photos of my four favourites and ordered prints! Prints to sell! I added them to my Etsy shop yesterday and I’ve already sold a few. Loads of people have added them to their shopping baskets (come on people, please hit “buy!”). One person has noticed the silliness in the product description too, I was having a funny five minutes at the time…
This probably won’t be a permanent thing, there is actual crochet that needs doing, but it is important to learn new skills and have a go at different things, don’t you think? Is there anything you fancy having a go at? And have you spotted any good crochet merch? If so, please let me know!
Moorit:: Of Shetland sheep or their wool: of a mid-brown colour, between fawn and dark brown. Of a garment, etc: made of moorit wool.
The Crochet Community has spoken, Moorit magazine is happening! We are getting a crochet magazine for crocheters, like no other that has been seen before.
Yarn lovers have chatted dreamily over the years about what it’d be like to have a high end crochet publication. Imagine, if you will, a cool crochet magazine that is collectible, beautiful, and features artisanal designs that you just have to make. It shouts from the rooftops that crochet is second to none! But here’s the thing, there are whispers about crochet, assumptions and rumours. …ugly stitches, they whisper at yarn shows….. gasp, squeaky acrylic!…. Shh, old ladies!… Pah! It is a reputation that us dreamers fight with fervour to shake. Modern crocheters understand that there’s more to the hook and yarn than the humble Granny square (and I’m saying this as a champion of the Granny). We love it for it’s rhythmic stitches and limitless twists and turns. In recent years, more and more designers are coming through who brilliantly showcase the very best that contemporary crochet has to offer. This is an exciting time.
Many of us have often wondered if a magazine would ever happen. Sadly, we didn’t really think “when,” it was more a wistful “if”. Alyson Chu is going to make sure it happens though. Did you see the huge success of Alyson’s Kickstarter campaign?! That’s how much we need Moorit! The first goal was smashed within two days. After two weeks, it has been totally obliterated. That speaks volumes! If you haven’t already, please go and read about Alyson’s vision on the Kickstarter page, you’ll learn about the detailed plans she’s working hard to bring to life, the designers who’ll be featured in Issue 1, and get a feel for the gorgeous aesthetic.
With a Masters degree in publishing and a passion for crochet, Alyson realised she had the skills and experience to make it a reality. Not just a dreamer but a full on innovator! It’s the right time and the right place. Yessss!
I was listening to her chat with Fay from the Crochet Circle Podcast the other day (you can watch the interview HERE), and it was awesome how she said [paraphrasing a bit] “If not me, then who?” She wasn’t going to sit back and wait for some else to do it. It might never happen. She told herself the same when she approached knitwear designer Jeanette Sloan about Bipoc in Fiber too, a website that highlights the creative work of Black, Indigenous & People of Colour within the yarn world. Alyson’s ambition and enthusiasm is gloriously contagious. Love it!
As well as the interview with Fay, do also check out the interview from Knitsonik. I really enjoyed reading this chat about crochet history and Moorit’s connection to Scotland. And I’ve just started reading the 1847 book, Miss Lambert’s “My Crochet Sampler” because of this interview! (you can find it online as a free digital download).
Moorit designers for Issue 1. I wish I’d given Alyson a better headshot…
I am so excited about Moorit. What an amazing opportunity to show crochet design at its very best. I can’t deny that it’s also about absolute privilege to be a part of issue 1 with one of my designs. I am chuffed to bits…. and waiting to get dragged back from my front row seat. Gulp! On a personal level I want to push myself and my skills as a designer for Moorit. For others, I want to challenge how they see crochet. This is crochet enrichment.
Just in time for autumn, Moorit will be here in September. It will focus on crochet garments and accessories for everyone, using beautiful fibres to do it. Issue 1 focuses on women’s wear but there will be designs in there that aren’t exclusively female. Come September we’ll have this plush publication in our hands. I literally cannot wait to leaf through its pages. Crochet is beautiful, it is time to celebrate! Don’t you think?! Yesss!!
I was at the very cold and windy beach yesterday when I realised how much I LOVED the crochet cowl I was wearing! Sat securely & snuggly around my neck, it wasn’t going anywhere. The best thing about a cowl is that there are no flappy scarf ends, breeze whipping them about my face! Neither will it slowly work itself free and slide to the ground. A crocheter can also hook up a handmade cowl pretty quickly.
I started counting up how many there were in my crochet collection. A LOT is the answer!! And they all get worn at this time of year. The ice cold weather this week isn’t set to rise above 3 degrees. A warm cowl is the first choice crochet accessory that I’m going to reach for.
Whether fancy 4ply or super chunky, there are all sorts of styles you can try. It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner crocheter as there are loads of easy cowl patterns to try. It doesn’t have to be fancy stitches or anything, you could smoosh together four largish granny squares (5 inches would do it) and that’s a cowl. When I say smoosh, I mean sew them together in a row and then join ends to create a circle. Voila, a cowl has been made.
This blog post is also a blatant excuse to share loads of my designs to tempt you into getting the yarn and hooks out. Of course it is….
Leaping Waves
I love this ripple cowl so much! I gave it to my mum for Christmas one year. Do you know I have never seen her wear it!? Shocking! It’s a DK merino project and the soft, buttery merino feels beautiful against a delicate neck.
I called it Leaping Waves as the ripple stitch undulates around. It’s also a nod to Outlander, which i haven’t seen for years. Everyone loved that first season, didn’t they?!! You can find the pattern HERE.
Isca Cowl
At one point last winter I briefly had red hair. It goes really well with the blue of my Isca cowl!
This pattern also comes with a matching head band too. You can find it HERE.
The mix of rib and bobbles stitches is one I would really like to visit again. It looks super sophisticated in this design. Especially as I’ve held a merino 4ply with a laceweight mohair. It’s gorgeous! The border of this design is a rib look that runs perpendicular to the verticle pattern on the main body, which is another feature that looks fab.
Striped Crochet Cowl Pattern
Companions, is a cowl and wrist warmers pattern set. I am so so pleased with this colourful stripey set. Ridiculously pleased. Every aspect works: the yarn, the pattern, the style. It’s exactly what I had imagined. This is the cowl I was wearing yesterday at the beach (the wrist warmers were left at home as I didn’t want them getting mucky whilst rooting through pebbles, looking for seashells!).
Apres Ski, C2C Cowl
I’d say that this hat and cowl are suitable for beginners who fancy a quick project that’s simple yet visually effective. A corner to corner chevron? It’s all in the colour work. Here’s the YouTube tutorial to show you how. The same pattern can easily be turned into a hat too (it’s good to have options!). I use a thick woolly yarn that’s definitely going to keep you warm on the slopes. Or, more importantly, after the skiing while you have a drink or two. [disclaimer:: I have never been near a ski slope in my life]
I got the idea for a C2C chevron fromthe granny chevron I designed(below) which, in turn came from a big floofy version I did. (I am currently obsessed and delighted with how ideas beget ideas – it’s fascinating).
Granny Cowl
A couple of years ago I was asked to design a granny stitch cowl for the front cover of Mollie Makes magazine (still a very proud moment of mine). The brief was for it to look a bit like a shawl. A shawl that’s not a shawl! It turned out to be one of my most popular designs ever. It’s for sale on Ravelry, Etsy and LoveCrafts. I included a chart which shows the shaping on this one.
I see triangle cowls popping up more and more in the knitting and crochet community. I’ve got more than one design now too.
Brighter Future
See? Another triangular shaped crochet cowl!
Brighter Future is a really pretty cowl that hasn’t been popular at all! Poor thing. I think perhaps that is because it’s slightly different from my usual style. However, I am really pleased with its delicate stitches. Made in 4ply yarn, this keeps your neck warm but isn’t heavy or cumbersome. It doesn’t get in the way whilst you’re wearing it, which is a real boon.
All the Fun of the Fair
This colourful granny stripe cowl is made in aran weight yarn. It was originally inspired by the stripes of the big top circus tents. It comes in two different sizes so you can have a small, neat one that fits more snuggly. Or this larger one (above) that has lots of colour and is, as the name suggests, pretty fun! I hope you like the post stitch ribbed edges too. It’s now pretty obvious to me from sharing these patterns that I have a thing for ribbed borders and edges. I don’t know if I’d noticed before).
Claudia Crochet Cowl
The Claudia Cowl is a simple and beautiful one skein project. Make yourself something special out of that gorgeous hand dyed yarn you’ve been saving. The skein I used was bought for my by my friend Claudia of Crochet Luna when we were at Yarndale together in 2018. It has subtle stitch texture with a Join As You Go rib edging.
An Asymmetric Granny
I know I know, this blog post features a lot of granny stitch cowls! But I love Granny stitch, it’s my medicine and I make no apologies for that. For this design, I bought some chunky nep yarn one day when I fancied a splurge. It became this interesting shape of a granny triangle shawl. You may be curious to learn that the origin of this one came from all the scribbly sketching of different ideas for the Mollie Makes front cover.
Have you made any? They don’t have to be small and simple. You can make elegant, double looping infinity scarves, or massive super chunky things that envelope your entire top half. There are loads of variants in between. Do have a favourite? Which one? Hopefully there’s something here to inspire you to get crocheting. Let me know how you get on!
Before I go there’s also ascarf and cowl bundle on Ravelrywhich is worth looking at. It’s a great starting point if you’re interested in quick but useful crochet projects.
Hello! How are you? Felt like podcasting so here I am! Please click on the pic above to go directly to the episode of crochet chat or hit the link for all,HERE.
There’s a lovely book Giveaway this episode. I meant to time it with a Wool on the Exe February Make Along but completely forgot to talk about the MAL soooo….
I’m totally in love with Companions, my new stripey set of crochet wrist warmers and cowl. There’s 25% off until the 13th Feb onRavelry and Etsy.
Wool on the Exe. Mustn’t forget (as I did in the episode), the team at WOTE are running a Make Along this month for the patterns in the book that I’m giving away.
John Arbon Textiles’ Yarnadelic comes in 25g and 100g skeins. Here’s the birthday podcast. I’m not an affiliate but with the lengths I go to to plug it, you’d be fooled into thinking I am!
Paintbox wool mix– This is an affiliate link, I recently set it up to see if it would be a viable finger in a pie. From each sale generated through the link I get a minimum 5% of the sale. The wool mix is my current fave aran weight yarn. It’s often on sale.
Color Pop Sweaterby My Square Hat. I’m a big fan of it’s unique construction.
Thanks to some very keen crocheters out there, my first version of a crochet JW Anderson cardigan has been super popular. Thanks for that! I’m not sure I need to explain at this point but I will: it’s the one that was made enormously popular by Harry Styles. Pretty sure you’ll know about all the cardigan by now, whether knitted and/or crocheted.
[FYI I recently signed up to the LoveCrafts affiliate program so I have linked to the yarn mentioned in this blog post (further down). I have no idea if it’s worth it yet but it won’t make any difference to your wallet whatsoever – just mine!]
My sister saw it and asked me to make one for her Christmas present. Initially I said “ugh, No”. I couldn’t be bothered to make another! Then my conscience got the better of me and I decided I should go for it. I thought about the changes I could make and it was enough to make me enthusiastic about knocking one out again.
The Second Cardi
The only reason I’ve made it again is because one of my sisters requested it for Christmas. She still hasn’t seen it yet because the rules of Covid have meant that I’ve not seen my family this Christmas. I posted it last week but apparently it takes a long time for parcels to get from one end of the island to the other.
My sister is smaller than me. Let’s say she’s a UK 8. I think. With my lockdown lard, I’m edging back to a 12. Because of the difference I did some maths based off the measurements from my first cardigan (see first post). This new cardi isn’t oversize on me but it probably will be on her. I actually prefer this fit to massively oversized (I do not require additional bulk on top, thank you very much).
After I saw this picture I took off the buttons and re-positioned them. I hadn’t noticed they were wonky at first! Oops!
Yarn
Colours: I bought new yarn rather than doing a random stash dive. I chose to use Paintbox wool mix aran. You can get it from Lovecrafts HERE (this link takes you directly to the wool, which is one of my fave yarns to work with). If you purchase by hitting the link, it means I will get paid a small percentage of the sale. There’s also a button somewhere about the place (on this blog) that is linked to my affiliate program, so if you spot that, give it a click to peruse more yarn!
I used one of each in the following colours: Buttercup yellow, Lipstick Pink, Light Caramel, Royal Blue, Bubblegum Pink, Marine Blue, Raspberry Pink, Grass Green, Paper White, Blood Orange, Coffee Bean, Ballet Pink, Dusty Rose, Spearmint Green, Washed Teal and Dolphin Blue.
When using the same colour in two different places it’s easiest to wind off enough so you can work the two squares without more tangle (rather than working both ends of the same ball, which I’ve done in the past). Just make a separate ball that’s big enough to make a square.
You can use other yarn like DK but it will affect the size. How about swatching!? Make a square, measure, multiply by nine (the amount of squares that equal the width around in this garment). Will that fit you? You may wish to add or remove two or three stitches and add or subtract a row or two. Experiment, work it out to find the size that suits you. The ultimate corner cutting is to find a sweater in your wardrobe that fits as you want this to fit and get the tape measure out.
Before I get into the knitty gritty, I am taking a moment to tell you that I have a Ko-Fi account HERE. Perhaps you would like to give me a few quid! I’d be very happy if that happened. Or, hop across to check out my free patterns page. Thank you.
Anyway, back to the crochet cardigan! …..
Ch Ch Changes
Hook size: This time I went for a 5.5mm, I like the tension it gave on this yarn.
Measurements: It’s 50cm (just under 20 inches) deep and 50cm wide, a boxy square! Sleeve length is also 50cm. The sleeve circumference is 31cm (12 inches).
Square size: each square is roughly 11x11cm (approx 4.5 inches) depending on the stitch used. Balancing out different stitches throughout means things won’t get too wonky (so don’t layer all your FLO squares on top of each other, they’re not as tall). But this cardigan is not about precision, it’s OK if it looks rough around the edges. To get the squares this size, each square is 15 stitches by 12 rows.
Buttons: Due to it being a smaller garment, I decided to drop a button rather than squeeze on 5. I also bought smaller ones, these are 25mm buttons. In these pics I hadn’t paid too much attention to button placement, my squares misaligned. I cut the buttons off and did them again. Remember to pay attention!
Button Band: It’s chain 8 and work 7htr (that’s US hdc stitches) for the band. Therefore, when it comes to making the button holes you need to do: 3htr, miss 1 st and chain 1, 3htr.
Decreasing at collar: I started the decreases earlier here because they’d have been too high on the neck. Check out the chart below, you can see where the sides come in just after the half way mark of the piece. To decrease each row, literally all I do is to stop one stitch short of the end, or skip one at the beginning of the row. You could do a different decrease if you wanted, whatever floats your boat.
Plaid
I got bored fiddling with animal print on cardi number one but definitely wanted a few squares that were different to the others. Plaid was the option I chose.
The circled ones (below) are the two I used as my guide. Each square on the grid represents a stitch. You swap yarns depending on what colour is due next, with three in the play at once. I drew a couple of others to show that if your squares have a different amount of rows and/or stitches, you may need to muck about to find a pattern that fits. Note, a half treble (US hdc) stitch is taller than it is wide.
Blocking
There are few different blocking methods. Here I steam blocked because the yarn has acrylic content (if all wool then I wet block). Not gonna go into the details of differences, that’d take too long. In this instance, pin out on a towel on the carpet, get some hot steam on it. I use the steam function on my iron. Every time I do this I brick it, thinking I’m going to melt hours of work! Never touch the iron to the work!
Some people will block before sewing everything together and others prefer to block the finished article. I’ve not explored which is best but I blocked the separate pieces this time. You can stretch it out as you pin which affects the size and shape of your crochet.
Are you willing to block it to size? I blocked this one but didn’t block the first version. Pretty sure I didn’t block my swatch for the first one either. This means that my first garment is even bigger now after a few months of wear (the weight of it has left it to stretch out on its own). I blocked this one as it was a gift for someone else and I didn’t want any surprises for my sister. Maaaaaybe it’s not an essential requirement but I think it is better to block.
Sleeve after blockingIn the rush to get it finished, I made mistakes throughout. It all adds to the look!
The End
And that’s it! Never making another patchwork cardi again! I am done.
I did get a few questions about the first one so it might be a good idea to read the comments section on both posts to see if there’s good stuff in there. Or, please do ask a question if you think of one. But all the elements should be included within these posts if you want to make your own. You just have to read it all! But that means if you want to make a different size you will be able to work it out with the information I’ve given you. Honest!
