yarn Archives - Zeens and Roger

Granny Square Sweater

March 5, 2023March 6, 2023crochet, free pattern5 Comments

How to Crochet a Granny Square Sweater

I didn’t mean to make this granny square sweater! Honest! I have other projects to work on but bright colours and my favourite stitch called to me. This quite often happens. I have a list of designs I “should” be working on when something else catches my eye. Usually, it’s quick and easy makes because I’m craving mindful crochet rather than brain-busting designs.

So, that’s where this granny square sweater comes in. I have just finished an intense commission which involved a lot of head scratching maths. Anything with the granny stitch is a counteractive remedy to the hard stuff so, because I have a very frazzled brain right now, this is a relatively basic “recipe” rather than a full on graded pattern.

It’s not quite as evil a recipe as on a Bake Off final, by which I mean, I do provide plenty of information! However, I haven’t written a round by round, row by row pattern. With my helpful video tutorial and charts below, you won’t need them.

It’s an eyeballing, intuitive project, that you can make up as you go along without worrying about getting the calculator out.

If you enjoy this blog post and the accompanying tutorial, perhaps you’d like to buy me a ko-fi! Thank you, you’re a superstar! You can find more of my Free Crochet Patterns HERE.

Watch the YouTube Tutorial on How to Make a Granny Square Sweater

TLDR

If you don’t fancy reading all the detail below and you are pretty crochet confident, this is it in a nutshell…

Get loads of different colours of aran weight yarn and a 4mm or 4.5 mm hook.
Make two granny squares in a size that are a similar width to a favourite jumper already in your wardrobe.
Add shoulder tabs (charts below).
Make two sleeves (charts below)
Sew together.
Add ribbing (either before or after it’s all sewn together).
Wash and block.

Watch the YouTube Tutorial on How to Make a Granny Square Sweater

Winging It

This “recipe” for my granny square sweater is for those who enjoy a laid back kind of project. I would love for you to have the confidence to make it up as you go. Play with placement of increases for sleeves, explore ways of basic shaping. Add length, add width. Shoulder tabs can be different too. Don’t like my crochet ribbing? Try a different one.

However, there are techniques here that will improve beginner crochet skills. The ribbing is fancier than a bog standard one, it is also attached with a Join-As-You-Go technique, which I love. There are shaped shoulder tabs for a nice neckline, and the sleeves aren’t just straight tubes. None of these things are set in stone. You can do what you want.

Also, the more you mess about with crochet by winging it, the more you understand the fibres you work with, and how crochet stitches behave. Crocheting your own clothes will become easier and your skills will grow. Therefore, just get started with experimenting and playing…

A colourful crochet Granny Square Sweater by Zeens and Roger.

Stashbusting Yarn

Let’s start with the yarn. I have lots of colourful aran weight wool leftover from a few different projects: My first garment design, the stripey Perfect Cardigan, All the Fun of the Fair, which is a granny stripe cowl/snood, and the second JW Anderson inspired cardigan I made for my sister. Plenty of colours in this lot! And it’s what I used to make my sweater.

I would say that 95% of stash used here is Paintbox Worsted Superwash (200m per 100g) and Paintbox Wool Mix aran (180m per 100g). There are a couple of other brands in there too. They have slightly different yardage/metreage but in the final jumper, you can’t tell. My fave is the wool mix aran, it’s much softer than the worsted superwash.

What Fibre?

You could use other yarns and fibres if that’s what you have in stash. The beauty of this jumper is that it is adaptable. Ultimately, the main body is a granny square so you just make it until it’s the right size. The sleeves would require more faffing but I quite enjoy the tinkering to get them just how I want them. More info on sleeves is further down the post.

Using acrylic? It’ll be grand for a few wears and washes without blocking (instead, use fabric conditioner and tumble dry so it doesn’t come out squeaky). Just know that it will grow and stretch a little bit upon wearing it. Usually, it’s not a drastic change but eventually, over time, acrylic sort of gives up and becomes flatter and more plasticky than its original fluffy self. That’s my experience anyway.

Using cotton? I can’t give much advice on a cotton version I’m afraid as I never make cotton garments. It’s just not my bag. There’s no bounce in the fibre. It stretches and drapes differently to wool and, so far, I’ve not required that for my designs. If I’m making a jumper I want warm wool. You may wish to make swatch to try it out (see below).

Granny Square sweater by Zeens and Roger

Choosing Colours for your Crochet

Yarn amounts (stash, leftovers) may have an influence on where you place the colours. The more colours you have, the more higgledy-piggledy and awesome it’s going to look. The fewer hues, the more “arranged” it will look. There are about 24/25 colours in mine. Some colours only feature once or twice as were only a few grams left of them.

I had the stash and balanced it all out following my gut. A couple of tips: don’t put all your brights together and evenly place the darker colours throughout. You can read more about how to choose colours for your crochet in another of my blog posts.

How much stash have you got? Use the smaller amounts early on in the squares, have you got enough for a sleeve row? You only need small lengths for the shoulder tabs too. Think about where to use the yarn in clever ways.

How Much Yarn do you Need to Crochet a Sweater?

How much yarn will you need to make your Granny Square Sweater? Oh crikey, how long is a piece of string? It depends on so many factors! The biggest one, however, is it depends on the size you’re making. There’s more info on sizing further down.

Most of the yarn I used is from Paintbox Yarns (aran & worsted, as I mentioned earlier). The worsted is 200m per 100 grams. I’m going to use this to work out how many metres I used. My jumper weighs about 810 grams, which means I used approx 1620 metres. You get this figure with the following equation: weight of the garment divided by the weight of a full ball, multiplied by the meters (or yards, if you prefer) in one full ball. Note that you will probably need more than this in reality as it’s made up of around 24 colours and you’re going to use various amounts of each.

The problem is that as it’s lots of leftovers, of many different colours, giving amounts for other sizes is difficult. Even giving specific amounts for the size I made is nearly impossible because I made no notes on my stash. Eek, sorry. But if you’re a hoarder like me, you’re gonna have loads of stash to use, yes?!

All I can give you is this, if you want to have matching ribbing on the cuffs, waistband and neck, ensure you have at least one full 100 gram ball of yarn for that. Maybe get two balls to be absolutely sure because I probably used approx 1 full ball of green but haven’t worked out how much exactly cos in my stash it was two partially used balls and some went in the main body of the jumper as well). Sorry again!

Zeens and Roger crochet design. Granny Square Jumper

How to Size your Granny Square Sweater

So, as you know by now, this is a recipe rather than a fully graded pattern, which means you might need to do some work! I will help you as much as possible here. And I will make sure it’s not painful. However, we are all making unique versions, right?

The absolute easiest way of making a jumper that’s going to fit you is to dig out your favourite fitting jumper and use that to work out how big to make your square. Take into account that your granny square sweater will stretch with wear (whether you’ve blocked it or not). Therefore, when I made mine, I made it approx 2 cm smaller than my favourite jumper, knowing it would stretch to become a similar size. There’s a slight risk of it stretching more than 2 or 3 cm but that’s ok for this project. We’re not after a fitted garment that’s super precise. This is a laid-back way of clothes making.

It’s worth mentioning, that the larger your square, the more it’s going to stretch. If each stitch stretches and you have more stitches, well, it’s going to make a difference. Fancy working up a gauge swatch, just in case?! Keep reading…

More Accurate Sizing

Ok, so I’ve popped this lil chart here as a useful guide to show a pretty standard width of a sweater with 10cm positive ease (positive ease = additional roominess in a garment, the opposite is negative ease, which makes a garment fitted against the body).

If you’re not sure about using your fav garment to measure against, you can always use this instead. You want your final granny square to be about this size in width. You can find more info about standard garment sizes on the Craft Yarn Council’s website.

Size	1 (xs)	2 (s)	3 (m)	4 (l)	5 (xl)	6 (2xl)	7 (3xl)	8 (4xl)	9 (5xl)	10 (6xl)
UK sizing	4	6-8	10-12	14-16	18-20	22-24	26-28	30-32	34-36	38-40
Width of granny (cm)	43.5	48.5	53.5	58.5	63.5	68.5	73.5	78.5	83.5	88.5

Sweater Length

At this point, you need to know that adding shoulder tabs and a waistband is going to add length to your jumper so the end result is that the sweater won’t actually be a square. Bear it in mind. With 4 rows of shoulder tabs and, just shy of 5cm for the waistband, my jumper is approx 57cm in length.

Gauge and Blocking

To be totally accurate you may be tempted to make a gauge swatch. This is a good idea! You can check that your crochet tension isn’t wildy off from mine. Read about getting gauge on your crochet clothes here.

This can be intimidating, I totally get it. And, although I’m totally winging it, I do have a good understanding of how washing and wearing a garment can alter the clothes you make. This is actually big big subject and I don’t want to scare you off by writing a massive essay about it.

Blocking?

Simply put, blocking means to wash or steam your woolly items and then (gently or aggressively, depending on the situation) pin out to stretch the item as it dries. It will then be fixed in its new state.

Spend a few minutes to work up a granny square that measures about 15cm (6 inches) and pop it in warm water (with a dash of detergent – I use wool wash soap for my handmade garments). Rinse, blot in a towel, then pin onto foam blocking boards and wait patiently for it to dry.

I didn’t mention it in the video tutorial but I pinned out and steam blocked my main pieces before sewing them together. It’s a really quick blocking method. I have a steamer but the steam function on an iron works too.
For me, this helps for more accurate sewing. The pieces are less likely to bunch or pucker.

The picture below shows what crochet looks like on the blocking boards. If you have a cat, it is pretty much guaranteed that they will want in on the blocking action.

Arghh, Maths! How Gauge Affects Size

I’m going to assume that you’ve read my quick blog post about gauge. My gauge for this project (after blocking) is about 8.5 rows per 10cm. If you don’t want to eyeball the granny square like did, you can use a formula to work out how big to make it instead. Using the measurement from your size in the chart above, multiply it by the row gauge (8.5) and divide by 10 (cos that’s how many centimetres get you 8.5 rows).

It turns out my eyeballing is surprisingly accurate. Check this out: 53.5 (size 3 as per the size chart) x 8.5 / 10 = 45.475. I worked 23 rounds of grannies. 23 x 2 =46!! Wowsers! (I’ve multiplied by 2 because we go around in a square, not rows. From the granny’s centre to the top, it’s 23 rows, from the centre to the bottom, it’s 23 rows).

And I know, I know I said you wouldn’t need a calculator. sorry about that. But technically it’s true if you’re winging it!

Make Your Granny Squares

You probably already know how to make a granny square but if not, I show you how in the video tutorial. I like to turn mine every round so that there’s no dreaded twist.

Once you have two granny squares that are the chosen size, add shoulder tabs to the top. I also demonstrate this in the vid. It’s a Granny stripe method with a touch of shaping so that the neck is a nice, rounded shape. See below for the charts.

On the bottom of the granny squares, work a row of UK dc (US sc) stitches. This is the base upon which you’ll work the waistband ribbing. Use the same colour that you’ll use for the ribbing.

By the way, at any point during this process, you’re going to have to sew in the eleventy bajillion ends. Hahahahahaha! Quite honestly, looking back, I don’t know how I did it without crying.

Add Shaped Shoulder Tabs

This is the next step beyond the most basic of boxy crochet garments. There is absolutely nothing wrong with basic square shaping for a crochet sweater. I make ’em sometimes. But here, let’s go one step further and add shoulder shaping. This creates a scoop neckline, which will sit nicely across your clavicles!

Of course, this is open to adapting in different ways. To keep it simple I have kept the front and back the same. I won’t mention too much more on this because I have a plan to demonstrate how you can tweak this in another version of this gloriously colourful granny square sweater.

Below is a chart showing the tabs attached to the main body (the granny square). I chose to add four rows for mine. You have the left and right tabs there. I should have drawn them mirrored. I didn’t. Oh well, it is still very useful to see them visually.

And by the power of Photoshop, it should look like this! Sort of…

Sleeves

Ok, so you’ve got the main body done. Now for the sleeves. They’re worked flat, in rows.

I want shaping here, very basic shaping. Luckily, arm length can stay the same regardless of the size of the main body so what I’m sharing here is going to work for the majority of folks. Of course, it’ll be different if you’re not using aran or worsted yarn. Obvs, things will vary if your tension is different so work more or fewer rows if needed.

My sleeves measure 46cm without cuffs, I worked 41 rows. Decide how long you want your sleeves and work as many rows as you want. And don’t forget that the cuffs add to the length too. They are 4cm so in total, I have 50cm length sleeves. This works for me and my arms. I’m a fan of 50cm sleeves!

Sleeve Width

Begin by working a foundation row of UK double crochet (US single crochet) using the ribbing colour. Check out my video tutorial for the foundation start. You need multiples of 3 plus 1. I worked 43 stitches for the beginning of my sleeves. After the first row of grannies appear, it measures approx 27cm at the wrist, and after you’ve worked 41 rows, the width at the other end (upper arm) measures 40cm. You might need to make yours narrower or wider than mine. Add or remove multiples of 3 stitches to change the sleeve width. Treat every 3 stitches as 2cm, so you’re adding or subtracting 2cm if you change the stitch count.

If you worked 43 stitches, the first row will have 13 granny clusters, plus the two ends.

Then add the JAYG cuffs. To be honest, you can add ribbing before or after you’ve constructed the jumper. I wanted them blocked at the same time so added them before. I’m not sure if I’d do this again but it worked in the way I wanted.

Next is a pic of the sleeve chart. Sorry for the hand-drawn nature of all my charts in this post. It was the quickest way of doing it!

Below is a not particularly tidy way of demonstrating where I put the increases at the ends of each row. There are more regular increases at the beginning before I decided I didn’t need as many to get the shape required. Play around with increases as much as you desire to create different sleeve shaping.

Only after making this chart did I realise I only crocheted 41 rows not 42. Oops.

Crochet Ribbing

I decided to add ribbing for the cuffs and waistband before sewing the pieces together. I was happy with my measurements of everything and knew I wouldn’t need to make further adjustments. If you’re not sure, add these after you have sewn the main pieces together. That way, if you need to adjust the depth of the ribbing, you only need to undo those sections and not the whole thing. I added the neckband once everything else was constructed.

For this granny square sweater, I opted for my current favourite crochet rib stitch. It looks fabulous and is an interesting technique that’s more sophisticated than basic rib stitches. It’s still Back Loop Only, like a lot of ribbing but this time with a two row pattern repeat.

With the wrong side facing you, attach the yarn to where you want the ribbing and chain 8 for the cuffs, 10 for the waistband and for the diddy neckline, chain 6.

Working down towards the foundation/base I used a yarn over slip stitches (yoslst) and on the way back up on the next row it’s just a simple slip stitch. Once again, you can see a demo of this in the video tutorial.

As a written pattern, the ribbing looks like this:

Chain 10 (for example)
Row 1 (w/s): Working in back bumps, yoslst in second ch from hook, yoslst to end, sl st in next 2 sts of foundation row, turn. [9 sts]
Row 2 (r/s): Miss 2 sl sts, 9sl sts BLO, turn.
Row 3: ch1, 9yoslst BLO, turn.
Rep Rows 2 & 3 to end.

Sew Everything Together

Remember to sew on the wrong sides to keep the right side as neat as possible. Use whip stitch, mattress stitch, whatever floats your boat.

1. Lay the front and back panels together (right sides together) and sew shoulder tabs together first.
2. Then, sew flat, the sleeves to the shoulders. Get them nicely lined up so that the centre of the upper sleeve is in line with the middle of the shoulder seam.
3. Fold everything in half and sew the sleeves and body in one fell swoop.
4. Add a round of UK dc (US sc) stitches around the neckband so there’s a foundation for the ribbing (matchy matchy with ribbing colour please).
5. Add neck ribbing (and cuffs & waistband if you left them to the end) and sew the ends to close.

Then, gently handwash and block if using wool yarn (yep, blocking again! I was thorough). The weight of itself should be enough to ensure it stretches appropriately. Once the excess water is gently squeezed out and blotted with towels, I didn’t bother to pin it out, just relied on the wet heft of it to stretch itself. [jeez, wet heft!]
If using acrylic, wash in a machine (not forgetting fabric conditioner to avoid the squeaky squeaky) and tumble dry.

And there you have it. A Granny Square Sweater!! That was a lot of words, right?! Eek, my longest blog post I think.

Please do let me know when you make yours, I would absolutely love to see. Upload your project to Ravelry and tag me on Instagram. #zeensandroger

BTW, This post contains an affiliate link, which means, if you buy through the link I set up for Lovecrafts.com, I get a small percentage of what you spend (at no extra cost to you).

If you thought this was completely brilliant and amazing, please consider buying me a ko-fi!

Cheers! xxx

Free Crochet Pattern. Ribbed Mohair Hat

February 5, 2023February 5, 2023crochet, free pattern2 Comments

I don’t need a new crochet hat, I have plenty of hats, but when is that ever an excuse? As a crocheter compelled to make stuff, hats are pretty good palette cleansers in between more complex projects. They are also great stash busters and I am definitely a fan of a decent stashbuster.

The idea behind this crochet hat is to use my pretty leftovers of mohair yarn from all the fluffy adventures I’ve been on over the last couple of years.

Before you read on for the pattern and its details, I have also made a YouTube video tutorial, which you can find HERE. During the editing process I noticed that I tell everyone I used a 4.5mm hook to make the hat, I didn’t. I used a 5mm. Please ignore “Tutorial Zeens”, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Well, mostly she does, everything else is good information….

On a family Sunday walk, wearing my stashbusting crochet hat.

Notes on Making your Crochet Hat

A Crochet Rib Stitch

I wanted to keep things simple but also use the best kind of crochet rib stitch. There are lots of hats crocheted in this kind of method but often I see a half treble (US half dc) worked in the back loop only. I love a htr back loop only but not for a rib. There are better options that are tidier and more effective, like the one I’ve used in this pattern.

For this hat I opted for a yarn over slip stitch (YO sl st) worked in the back loop only (BLO). It worked just as I wanted it to. It’s a stitch that would look great in fishermans’ rib style jumpers (must make one of these).

Please watch the video tutorial for a stitch demo. It’s one of those stitches that’s a little bit fiddly when you’re just learning but once it becomes a rhythm, it’s actually quite fun to do.

The stitch goes like this: Yarn over (YO), and insert hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull through all loops on hook.

The Yarn

The main yarn I used was a DK merino held with a laceweight kid silk mohair. If you have never used mohair yarn before but fancy giving it go, check out my tips of using mohair yarn.

The blips of contrast colours were a selection of all fluffy yarns in my stash leftover from previous projects. Mine range from laceweight to DK weight to chunky.

You can get fluffy yarn across all budgets and I threw everything into this hat regardless of weight or brand. The Christmas before last I made mohair and brushed alpaca scrunchies for my nieces. The leftovers are in this hat. The summer of that year I made a colourful cardigan out of MYPZ chunky mohair. (oh lordy, I called it DK in the video – another mistake!). I also had fluff from other projects too. Let’s chuck it all at the hat!

The colour changes are pretty lazy. Working with two strands all the time, whenever I wanted to introduce a new shade, I popped the one I didn’t want out of the way and laid a new strand with the one still in use. Then I swapped back when the contrast colour ran out, or whenever it felt right. When not in use, I floated most of the main colour across the wrong side of the work. Sometimes, if they were overly long, I’d snip them and rejoin later.

Crocheting a Hat to Fit

I worked 70 rows of 40 stitches. The piece of fabric measures 23 (the hat’s depth) x 47cm (the hat’s length). My head measures 56cm, which is quite a few centimeters more than the length of the hat. This is because you need negative ease in a hat so it stretches to fit. Standard negative ease is about 5-6cm for a hat. Mine is a little more than that as it will stretch out further upon wearing. Essentially my own head is “blocking” it out as I wear it.

Blocking? Simply put, blocking means to wash or steam your woolly items and then (gently or aggressively) stretch out the item as it dries. It will then be fixed in its new state. I have no intention of properly blocking the hat. I have no intention of washing the hat at all (unless it falls into a muddy puddle or something) so I don’t think blocking is too urgent. It depends on your own personal preference for a project like this. Yes, a gentle steam block will even out stitches. And yes, it will create additional length and width by being stretched out. It depends on how particular you are as to whether you want to do it properly. This is a quick win crochet hat so I’ve just eyeballed it.

By all means, if you’re a harcore perfectionist, make up a swatch, wash it and leave to dry. You can then measure how many rows and stitches there are over 10cm (4 inches). From these measurements you can work out Gauge.

Here’s my unblocked gauge: 18 sts and 15 rows per 10cm. It varies a little bit here and there when the different weights of yarn are applied.

Crochet Ribbed Mohair Hat Pattern

Things You Need

100g of DK yarn, I used West Yorkshire Spinners “Bo Peep”, which comes in 50g balls.
25g kid silk mohair, laceweight. I used Drops.
Lots of different contrasting colours of various mohair, brushed alpaca, or similar.
You will need extra of everything for the pompom. If you’re shopping for the whole shebang, add 3x 50g dk and 2x 25g laceweight to your shopping basket for the main body of the hat.
5mm hook. This is me going up a hook size than I’d normally use. I found it too fiddly to get the hook into the Back Loop Only (BLO) with a smaller hook.

Hat Pattern

Chain 41
Row 1: In the second chain from hook YO sl st, YO sl st to end, turn. [40 sts]
Row 2 – Row 70 (or however many rows you need for a bigger/smaller noggin): 1ch, YO sl st BLO to end, turn. [40 sts]

This finished piece measures approx 23 x 47cm.

When changing colours, ensure ends are all on the “wrong side”. I didn’t worry about sewing them in. I am going to let their flyaway fibre structure do the work for me. Mohair never wants to let go so I’m pretty sure none of these contrast colours will work themselves loose. If in doubt, feel free to tie ends together before tidying up the ends with a pair of scissors.

When you fasten off, leave a long tail for sewing. Sew up the side using a whip stitch, do this wrong side out. I have demonstrated a way of doing this in the tutorial that ensures it’s pretty much invisible. Using the same length of yarn, run the needle along the top circumference of the hat, going in and out of the rows. Gently but firmly pull to close. Then, secure everything in place by working the needle around the gathers, back and forth, again and again to lock it all in place. Tie off but don’t snip just yet.

Tiddly Om Pom Pom

I am not going to write a step by step process for pompom making. I am not good enough! But you will hear my delight in the video tutorial when I made the one for the hat. I have every confidence that you will be better than me at making a pompom. But at least I didn’t break the yarn this time. Be careful when tying off the pompom as I have a tendency to break the yarn by pulling too hard!

When attaching your big fluffy sphere to the hat, be firm with the tying so the pompom won’t loosely flap about atop your head. Once secure, I also tied all loose ends together and then snipped to trim rather than sew them in. No one has time for that, especially you aren’t going to see them.

If you don’t want to make a fool of yourself like I did you can always buy a ready made one?

Wayward Sisters. An easy Crochet Shawl Pattern

October 9, 2022October 11, 2022crochet5 Comments

Wayward Sisters, a Granny Stripe Crochet Shawl.

Wayward Sisters, a Crochet Shawl Pattern

We three met on the cusp of autumn. No thunder, lightning or rain, just glorious September sunshine and lots of crochet goss. It was the perfect weather for a weekend in the Cotswolds for three people obsessed with the same thing. Crochet!

The crochet shawl pattern I’m sharing here was borne from our weekend. Practically whipped up the whole thing whilst we were there, it’s that easy! Crocheting granny stripes is a doddle and just the thing needed to relax the brain.

The free pattern is below. Or, if you’d prefer, you can buy a downloadable PDF that isn’t littered with waffle and ads. The PDF can be found on Ravelry, Etsy and Lovecrafts.

Try my other Free Patterns here.

(Btw this post contains one affiliate link for the yarn if you want to directly check out the yarn I used)

Wayward Sisters

We all convened on a Friday afternoon when the sun was at its warmest. I can’t speak for the others but driving through picturesque English towns and country lanes to find an old barn to stay in felt proper exciting. The idea of a weekend away to literally focus on crochet, work on projects, and generally have a good time was much needed.

The last time I met up with Fay (of Fay H Designs and the Provenance Craft Co.) was in the early summer. She was vending at the John Arbon Textiles Mill Open Weekend and I was teaching a crochet class. Over the years, we’ve always managed to have quick chats at yarn festivals but I don’t think we’d ever sat down to have a proper chinwag. As we caught up she proposed the idea of a weekend away with crochet and friends. She and Michelle (of Dora Explored) had already been brewing plans for this so it was an easy Yes from me. Hovering over Google Maps, we poked a finger on the map, somewhere equidistant for all three of us, it landed on the Cotswolds. That’ll do nicely, thank you.

I met Michelle (of Dora Does and Dora Explored) for the first time three years ago. Rather fortuitously, she was in Devon for a family holiday and I recognised her IG pics so knew she was literally ten minutes from my house. We met up for tea and cake, with me being v late, dragging two kids who just wouldn’t get dressed that morning. We chatted for ages and I knew I’d found someone just as obsessed with crochet as me!

Yarn Everywhere

The funniest bit upon arriving was discovering that we had all brought a car full of yarn. Bags and bags, stacks of boxes, WIPs and secret projects! Yarn everywhere!

Despite bringing half my yarn stash I didn’t want to work on anything already begun. My new granny stripe crochet shawl has been on the agenda for the longest time but it has never been a priority. Ultimately it was the right balance of fun, relaxing and new. It fit in really well with the chilled atmosphere where there was zero pressure. Sometimes that’s just what everyone needs.

So the weekend went thusly: wake up, do a bit of crochet, wander round the garden picking pears, apples and sloes. Find some walnut trees (good for yarn dyeing), go back inside for a spot more crochet. Have a cup of tea. Go for a walk, go into town, have a pub lunch sat alongside the river Thames. Sniff out any yarn shops (hmm, half a one). Do a bit more crochet. Have some wine, do some crochet at a different tension…

I’ve shared a few photos here. There was a creepy old shed that I loved. It had great angles and light but my photography skills aren’t up for taking advantage of such a backdrop. The town of Lechlade was a great host. Amongst the interesting shops there was an antique place stuffed full of crazy taxidermy. What a fab weekend.

The Chosen WIP

After all that, you will want the pattern for a crochet shawl, right? I’m so happy to share this as I want you to enjoy the fun of relaxing crochet.

I made this crochet shawl because it was repetitive, methodical and I could trust it to do as it was told without me using too much brain power. In my holiday yarn stash were several (already wound) cakes of Cascade 220 Fingering yarn. Quite honestly, there were a few different projects I could have started with it . There’s still plenty left so, no doubt, you’ll see designs with related colour palettes at some point. But because a granny stripe crochet shawl had been on the To Do list for a while, it easily won as the thing to make.

Soothing Granny Stripes

Oky doky, before you begin, please know that this is a very easy single row pattern repeat. Once the first couple of starter rows are out the way, every row is the same. This is Easy Crochet at its finest! Adding stripes of colour in the mix stops too much monotony and really lifts the shawl. But ultimately, we’re just talking stripes of wonderful granny clusters.

When I started working on the shawl I felt almost embarrassed. I felt like I should be working on something impressive and fancy. I was with professionals who take this art very seriously!! But this was when it dawned on me why I like the granny stitch so much. It’s because it is the ultimate in comfort crochet. This shawl is the very definition of comfort crochet! It’s not out to impress, it only wants to make you feel good.

Do you often return to your favourite stitches? This could be why. Our favourite stitches make us feel safe and relaxed. That’s perfectly OK. I don’t always want or need crochet that soothes me but when I do, Hello Granny!

Crochet Shawl Pattern

Here we go! Things you will need are: a 4mm hook, 3x50g skeins of Cascade 220 Fingering for the Main Colour, and 6 contrasting colours. I used approximately 20g of each.

Pattern Notes

The pattern is written in UK terms. The main stitch is a UK treble, which is a US double crochet.
Contrast colours (CCs) are used three times each with 18 stripes of colour in total.
In established pattern, the CCs are placed every fourth row.
Rather than sewing in ends, I attached tassels to hide colour changes. Knot the loose ends together first before attaching tassels.
The PDF contains a chart with crochet symbols to follow.
The PDF also has a table charting where the colour chances are and where they are.
The PDF written pattern is available on Ravelry, Etsy, and Lovecrafts.

The Instructions

Work the first 4 rows in the MC, then change colour to a CC for the first time on the last st of Row 4. Then work a CC every 4th row.

Chain 4 and join with a slip stitch, or make a magic circle.
Row 1: ch4 (counts as 1tr and 1ch here & throughout), 3tr, 1ch, 1tr, turn. [1 cluster of 3 tr + 1 st at either side]
Row 2: ch4, 3tr in first ch-sp, 1ch, (3tr, 1ch, 1tr) in last ch-sp, turn. [2 clusters + 1 st at either side]
Row 3: ch4, 3tr in first ch-sp, 1ch, 3tr in next ch-sp, 1ch, (3tr, 1ch, 1tr) in last ch-sp, turn. [3 clusters + 1 st at either side, increasing by 1 cluster each row]
Row 4: ch4, 3tr in first ch-sp, 1ch, *3tr in next ch-sp, 1ch; rep from * to last ch-sp, (3tr, 1ch, 1tr) in last ch-sp, turn.
Rows 5 – 76: Rep Row 4.

To Tassel or Not or Tassel?

Are you a fan of tassels? The jury is still out for me. The tassels are there because I couldn’t be bothered to sew in the ends. That’s all. As much as they add lots of mood lifting colour, I am tempted to undo them and add a less jazzy border. It’ll be simple to do, and if it happens and I shall come and report what I did.

And there you have it. Did you get beyond the tangenty gas-bagging?!

To give you a crochet shawl pattern I have to tell a story behind its construction. I enjoy telling the tale of how a design comes about. I just hope people enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them!

Anyway, with that, the Wayward Sisters came together, worked some magic, and then bid each other farewell. Until next time…

Cheers. x

Z&R Crochet Podcast 101. The Curse of the Creative

August 19, 2022August 19, 2022crochet4 Comments

Fancy Watching a Crochet Podcast?

It has been a while but here is Episode 101, the latest crochet podcast which, you can watch over on YouTube now! I hope it’s worth the wait. It’s chock full of lots of different yarny projects so I think (I hope), you will enjoy spending some time with me.

To watch the episode, you can find it by clicking on the picture above, or popping across my YouTube channel HERE.

The list below is representative of the topics discussed in this latest crafty chat but if there is anything missing please do give me a shout…

Notes & Links to the Crochet Good Stuff:

A couple of blog posts that might interest you are: Working with Mohair Yarn which has a few tips on working with the fluffy stuff. And another, which is an easy guide to How to get Gauge for crochet clothes.

The cotton bucket hat is my latest free pattern. You can find it on the blog right HERE. There’s lots more detail on that blog post about the yarn I used and the pattern itself.

More is to follow about the Farmer’s Field cowl so no actual links yet. I’m feeling self conscious about it. Is it good enough? I like it, I am pleased with the eyelet details. Having a few wholes makes the yarn go further and is a bit different from my usual Corner to Corner crochet patterns.

I did mention about the John Arbon Knit By Numbers yarn though, that is now a C2C cowl but was once an early version of Harvest Moon. Check out crochet podcast episode 36 with that old edging!

The Granny Square Market features in issue 149 of Inside Crochet magazine. Since recording I have already started working on a V stitch version. The release date for it on my own online sales platforms will be at the end of October.

Have you seen Perpetual Dawn yet? It’s a granny square shawl designed by yours truly for The Fibre Company’s “By Hook” Collection. There’s nothing quite like a giant granny project is there?! And I like how this one looks very grown up. I don’t know if you remember but I used their yarn before in the Foragers’ Shawl.

Happy Crocheting. Cheers! X

Granny Market Bag for Inside Crochet magazine

Mixtape Medley Crochet Blanket Pattern – US terms!

January 16, 2022October 6, 2022crochet2 Comments

Mixtape Medley Crochet Blanket. A great crochet pattern to learn new stitches. — Mixtape Medley Crochet Blanket

The Mixtape Medley Crochet Along has been such an exciting CAL and I cannot tell you how thrilling it is that so many of you have taken part in making this crazy crochet blanket pattern. There have been some brilliant brilliant brilliant versions made and it is such a lovely thing to see. Check out the Instagram hashtag #MixtapeMedleyCAL to see a variety of colour combinations that will make you swoon.

It’s about time I shared the pattern here on the blog (keep scrolling – it’s below!). I thought it would be a good idea to publish my biggest crochet project to date, right here, using US crochet terminology.

As well as scrolling down in this post, to full pattern with the US terms, you can find the UK pattern broken down in its CAL parts on the Hobbycraft website HERE. There are links to the video tutorials there too (I use UK terms in the videos).

If you’d like a glimpse into how I designed Mixtape Medley, I talk about it HERE in a Youtube video about designing crochet and getting your work published.

Yarn and Other Things you Need to Know

You need any DK (or similar) yarn. That’s in the number 3 category. I used Knitcraft Everyday DK 50 gram balls (100% Acrylic, 137m/150yds) in the following colours:

Purple (YA) x 3 balls, Mint (YB) x 4, Hot Pink (YC) x 2
Beige (YD) x 5, Orange (YE) x 2, Teal (YF) x 2
Light Blue (YG) x 4, Brown (YH) x 2, Peach (YI) x 3
Barbie Pink (YJ) x 2, Red (YK) x 2, Blue (YL) x 2

I used a 3.75mm hook as my tension is quite loose. A 4mm (G/6) works great too.

Blanket Measurements

This blanket measures 125cm x 195cm / 49 x 77 inches

Stitch Tension/ Crochet Gauge

Whilst tension isn’t a major issue it does have an affect on the amount of yarn used. The shade Peach for example, uses nearly every scrap of yarn of the three 50g balls listed. You would run out if your tension is looser.

If you’ve got the energy, make this small swatch to check you gauge.
Row 1: Using a Foundation Start (see Special Stitches), work 25fdc sts, turn – 25 sts
Row 2: 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Rows 3 – 17: Rep Row 2.
10cm should equal 14 rows /19 sts

Notes for Mixtape Medley

Changing colour: change yarn on the last pull through of the st before the new colour is needed.
For colour block/plaid rows, carry non working yarn along the row, working over the yarn as you go. Remember to regularly untwist your yarn to prevent tangles!
C2C rows can sometimes pull in slightly. You can adjust the tension by going up a hook for these sections. Although, I didn’t bother.
It’s a lovely big blanket and is a generous single bed size.
To adjust the size of your blanket, use multiples of 36. This blanket uses 6 multiples of 36 (plus 1) to get to 217 stitches. Add or subtract 36 stitches to make adjustments to the size.
The Hobbycraft video tutorials use UK terms but provide a really good visual so they’re still valid and helpful.
At the bottom of this page you’ll find a printable PDF to download for free!! ….
If you have enjoyed all the Mixtape Medley delights thus far and appreciate the work that has gone into the project, then I would totally do that happy dance if you bought me a Ko-fi!

Crochet Abbreviations

ch = chain, ch-sp = chain space, dc = double crochet, folls = follows/following,
fdc = foundation double crochet, hk = hook, hdc = half double crochet,
lp/s = loop(s), rem = remain/ing, rep = repeat, sc = single crochet
sl st = slip stitch, st/s = stitches, tr = treble crochet, yrh = yarn around hook,
YA/YB etc = yarn A/yarn B etc, JAYG = join as you go,
C2C = corner to corner crochet, RS/WS = right side/wrong side

Special Crochet Stitches

Foundation Start (fdc): ch4 (counts as a st), yrh, insert hook in 4th ch from hook, yrh, draw through, yrh, draw through 1 lp (to create 1 ch into which the next st will be worked), yrh, draw through 2 lps, yrh, draw through 2 lps. Work next fdc (foundation double) into the 1ch created and the lp behind it.

Bobble stitch: (made on the wrong side of blanket):
[yrh, insert hook into st, yrh, pull through, yrh, pull through 2 lps] five times in same st, yrh, pull through all 6 lps.

Puff stitch: [yrh, insert hook into st, yrh and pull up yarn] three times in same st, yrh, draw through all 7 lps on hook.

hdc join: (joining a round with a hdc means you finish in the very centre of a corner):
yrh, insert hook into 1st st of round, yrh, pull through, yrh, pull through all 3 lps.

Mixtape Medley is a Hobbycraft collaboration for a 2021 Crochet Along

Mixtape Medley Blanket Pattern

Week 1

Row 1 (ws): With YA and 4mm hook, 217 fdc, turn – 217 sts.
Alternatively work 219ch and work 1 dc in 4th ch from hk and 1dc in each ch to end.
Row 2: 1ch (does not count as a st here and throughout), dc to end, turn. Change to YB.

BLOCKS

Row 3: 1ch, 9hdc in YB, *9hdc in YC, 9hdc in YB; rep from * to last 10 sts, hdc in YC to end, turn.
Row 4: 1ch, 10hdc in YC, 9 hdc in YB, *9hdc in YC, 9hdc in YB; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 5: rep Row 3.
Row 6: rep Row 4.
Row 7: rep Row 3.
Row 8: rep Row 4 changing to YC on last st, turn.
Row 9 -14: continue in pattern, repeat the last 6 rows but switch colours around to begin with YC followed by YB.

BOBBLE ROWS

Rows 15 & 16: with YD, 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 17 (ws): with YE, 1ch, 4sc, 1bobble, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5sc, turn.
Rows 18 & 19: with YD 1ch, hdc to end, turn.

Week 2

JAYG C2C

This C2C section represents the next 6 rows of the blanket: Rows 20-25.
Working on the diagonal, each row is anchored with a slip stitch to the main body of the blanket.
You may wish to use a 4.5mm hook for this section.
Increases
Row 1 (rs): with YF, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of rem 2 ch (1 block made), miss 2 sts of main blanket, 1sl st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 1 block
Row 2: 3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, 1sl st in ch-sp of first block, 3ch, 3dc in same sp, turn – 2 blocks.
Row 3: 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * once, miss 2 sts, 1sl st in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 3 blocks
Row 4: 3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, *1sl st in next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc; rep from * to end, turn – 4 blocks.
Row 5: with YG, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 5 blocks.
Row 6: rep row 4 – 6 blocks.

Work even as folls:
Row 7: 3 sl sts across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, *1sl st into next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 8: *3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, 1sl st in next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 9: Rep Row 7, changing to YF on fourth sl st into first ch-sp.
Rows 10 – 71: rep Rows 8 & 9 to last st, alternating between YF & YG every four rows.
Row 72: Rep row 8.

Decreases
Row 73: 3sl st across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, *3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, 1sl st into next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn – 5 blocks.
Rows 74 – 77: rep row 73.
Fasten off and sew in C2C ends (and all other ends so far)!

Row 26: with RS facing, attach YG in corner, work 217sc across main blanket: 1sc in top of the 3 vertical dc sts and 3sc around the bar of horizontal sts, plus an additional 1sc st at the beginning.

HOUNDSTOOTH

Row 27: with YH 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 28: 1ch, 1dc, *1sc, 1dc; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 29: with YI, 1ch, 1sc, *1dc, 1sc; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 30 – 33: Rep Rows 28 & 29 alternating colours.
Row 34: with YH rep Row 28 once more.
Row 35: rep Row 27.

BOBBLES x 3

Rows 36- 38: with YB 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 39 (ws): with YJ, 1ch, 4sc, 1bobble, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5sc, turn.
Rows 40 – 42: rep row 36.
Row 43: with YE, 1ch, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 10 sts, 10sc, turn.
Rows 44 – 46: rep row 36.
Row 47: with YK, rep row 39.
Row 48 – 50: rep row 36.

Week 3

PLAID

Row 51: with YL 1ch, 4hdc, *change to YG, 4hdc, change to YL, 4hdc; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5hdc in YG, turn.
Row 52: 1ch, 5hdc, change to YL, 4hdc, *change to YG, 4hdc, change to YL, 4hdc; rep from to end, turn.
Row 53: rep row 51.
Row 54: With YL 1ch, 5hdc, change to YD, 4hdc, *change to YL, 4hdc, change to YD, 4hdc; rep from to end, turn.
Row 55: 1ch, 4hdc, *change to YL, 4hdc, change to YD, 4hdc; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5hdc in YL, turn.
Row 56: rep Row 54.
Rows 57 – 59: rep rows 51- 53.
Rows 60 – 62: rep rows 54 – 56.
Rows 63 – 65: rep rows 51 – 53.

CLOSED SHELLS

Row 66: with YJ, 1ch, dc to end, turn.
Row 67: with YH, 1ch, 3dc in first st, miss 2 sts, 1sc, miss 2 sts, *5dc in next st, miss 2 sts, 1sc, miss 2 sts; rep from * to last st, 3dc in last st, turn.
Row 68: with YE,1ch, 1sc in first st, *miss 2 sts, 5dc in sc, miss 2 sts, 1sc in next st; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 69: with YK rep row 67.
Row 70: with YA rep row 68.
Row 71: with YB rep row 67.
Row 72: with YJ, 1ch, dc to end, turn.

Week 4

PUFF WAVES

Row 73: with YF, 1ch, hdc to end, turn. Row 74: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Rows 75 & 76: with YI, 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 77: 1ch, 4dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc, *2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 4 sts, 4dc, turn.
Row 78: 1ch, 4dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc, *miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next ddc, miss 3 sts, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 4 sts, 4dc, turn.
Row 79: 1ch, 1sc in each st and 1ch-sp to end, turn.
Row 80: 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 81: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Row 82: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next st, miss 3 sts, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next st, miss 3 sts, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Row 83: rep row 79.
Row 84: rep row 80.
Row 85: rep row 77.
Row 86: rep row 78.
Row 87: rep row 79.
Row 88: rep row 80.
Row 89: With YF, rep row 81.
Row 90: 1ch, hdc to end, turn.

GRANNY BLOCKS

Row 91: with YD, 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 92: 1ch, 4dc, *miss 1 st, 1ch, 3dc; rep from * to last st, 1dc in last st, turn.
Row 93: With YK, 1ch, 1sc, 3ch, miss 3 dc, *1sc in ch-sp, 3ch, miss 3 dc; rep from * to last st, 1sc, turn.
Row 94: with YD, 1ch, 1dc in first st, 3dc in ch-sp, *1ch, miss sc, 3dc in ch-sp; rep from * to last st, 1dc in last st, turn.
Row 95: with YC, rep row 93.
Row 96: with YD, rep row 94.
Row 97: with YL, rep row 93.
Row 98: with YD, rep row 94.
Row 99: 1ch, 1sc in each st and ch-sp to end, turn.

Week 5

BLOCKS

Row 100: with YB, 1ch, dc to end, turn.
Row 101: 1ch, 9hdc in YA, *9hdc in YG, 9hdc in YA; rep from * to last 10 sts, hdc in YG to end, turn.
Row 102: 1ch, 10hdc in YG, 9hdc in YA, *9hdc in YG, 9hdc in YA; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 103: rep Row 101.
Row 104: rep Row 102.
Row 105: rep Row 101.
Row 106: rep Row 102 changing to YG on last st, turn.
Rows 107 – 112: continue in pattern by repeating the last 6 rows but switch colours around to begin with YG followed by YA

BOBBLE

Rows 113 & 114: with YD, 1ch, hdc to end, turn
Row 115 (ws): with YH, 1ch, 4sc, 1bobble, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5sc, turn.
Rows 116 & 117: with YD 1ch, hdc to end, turn.

JAYG C2C

This C2C section represents the next 6 rows of the blanket: Rows 118-123.
Increases
Row 1: with YK, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch (1 block made), miss 2 sts of main blanket, 1sl st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 1 block.
Row 2: 3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, 1sl st in ch-sp of first block, 3ch, 3dc in same sp, turn – 2 blocks.
Row 3: 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * once, miss 2 sts, 1sl st in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 3 blocks
Row 4: 3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, *1sl st in next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc; rep from * to end, turn – 4 blocks.
Row 5: with YJ, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn. – 5 blocks.
Row 6: rep row 4 – 6 blocks.

Work even as folls:
Row 7: 3sl sts across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, *1sl st into next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 8: *3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, 1sl st in next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 9: rep Row 7, changing to YK on fourth sl st into first ch-sp.
Row 10 – 71: rep Rows 8 & 9 to last st, alternating between YJ & YK every four rows.
Row 72: rep row 8.

Decreases
Row 73: 3sl sts across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, *3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, 1sl st into next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn. – 5 blocks.
Rows 74 – 77: rep row 73.
Sl st to corner, fasten off and sew in ends!
Row 124: With RS facing, attach YJ in corner, 217sc across main blanket: 1sc in top of the 3 vertical dc sts and 3sc around the bar of horizontal sts, plus an additional 1sc st at the beginning.

Week 6

HOUNDSTOOTH

Row 125: with YE 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 126: 1ch, 1dc, *1sc, 1dc; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 127: with YB 1ch, 1sc, *1dc, 1sc; rep from * to end, turn.
Rows 128 – 131: Rep Rows 126 & 127 alternating colours.
Row 132: with YE rep Row 126.
Row 133: rep Row 125.

BOBBLES x 3

Rows 134 – 136: with YI, 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 137 (ws): with YF, 1ch, 4sc, 1bobble, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5sc, turn.
Rows 138 – 140: rep Row 134.
Row 141: with YL, 1ch, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 10 sts, 10sc, turn.
Rows 142 – 144: rep Row 134.
Row 145: with YG, rep row 137.
Row 146 – 148: rep Row 134.

PLAID

Row 149: with YK 1ch, 4hdc, *change to YC, 4hdc, change to YK, 4hdc; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5hdc in YC, turn.
Row 150: 1ch, 5hdc, change to YK, 4hdc, *change to YC, 4hdc, change to YK, 4hdc; rep from to end, turn.
Row 151: rep row 149.
Row 152: with YK 1ch, 5hdc, change to YD, 4hdc, *change to YK, 4hdc, change to YD, 4hdc; rep from to end, turn.
Row 153: with YD 1ch, 4hdc, *change to YK, 4hdc, change to YD, 4hdc; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5hdc in YK, turn.
Row 154: rep Row 152.
Rows 155 – 157: rep rows 149 – 151.
Rows 158 – 160: rep rows 152 – 154.
Rows 161 – 163: rep rows 149 – 151.

Week 7

CLOSED SHELLS

Row 164: with YH, 1ch, dc to end, turn.
Row 165: with YB, 1ch, 3dc in first st, miss 2 sts, 1sc, miss 2 sts, *5dc in next st, miss 2 sts, 1sc, miss 2 sts; rep from * to last st, 3dc in last st, turn.
Row 166: with YL, 1ch, 1sc in first st, *miss 2 sts, 5dc in sc, miss 2 sts, 1sc in next st; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 167: with YG rep row 165.
Row 168: with YE rep row 166.
Row 169: with YI rep 165.
Row 170: with YH, 1ch, dc to end, turn.

PUFF WAVES

Row 171: with YA, 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 172: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Rows 173 & 174: with YG, 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 175: 1ch, 4dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc, *2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 4 sts, 4dc, turn.
Row 176: 1ch, 4dc, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc, *miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next st, miss 3 sts, 3hdc, 5sc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 4 sts, 4dc, turn.
Row 177: 1ch, sc in each st and 1ch-sp to end, turn.
Row 178: 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 179: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, 2dc, 3ddc, 2dc, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Row 180: 1ch, 3sc, 3hdc, miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next st, miss 3 sts, 3hdc, *5sc, 3hdc, miss 3 sts, 1ch, (1puff, 1ch) three times in next st, miss 3 sts, 3hdc; rep from * to last 3 sts, 3sc, turn.
Row 181: rep row 177.
Row 182: rep row 178.
Row 183: rep row 175.
Row 184: rep row 176.
Row 185: rep row 177.
Row 186: rep row 178.
Row 187: With YA, rep row 179.
Row 188: 1ch, hdc to end, turn.

GRANNY BLOCKS

Row 189: with YD, 1ch, sc to end, turn.
Row 190: 1ch, 4dc, *miss 1st, 1ch, 3dc; rep from * to last st, 1dc in last st, turn.
Row 191: With YF, 1ch, 1sc, 3ch, miss 3dc, *1sc in ch-sp, 3ch, miss 3dc; rep from * to last st, 1sc, turn.
Row 192: with YD, 1ch, 1dc in first st, 3dc in ch-sp, *1ch, miss sc, 3dc in ch-sp; rep from * to last st, 1dc in last st, turn.
Row 193: with YJ, rep row 191.
Row 194: with YD, rep row 192.
Row 195: with YK, rep row 191.
Row 196: with YD, rep row 192.
Row 197: 1ch, 1sc in each st and ch-sp to end, turn.

Week 8

JAYG C2C

This C2C section represents the next 6 rows of the blanket: Rows 198- 203.
Increases
Row 1: with YH, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch (1 block made), miss 2 sts, of main blanket, 1sl st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 1 block
Row 2: 3ch, 3dc in 3ch sp, 1sl st in ch-sp of first block, 3ch, 3dc in the same sp, turn – 2 blocks.
Row 3: 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * once, miss 2sts, 1sl st in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 3 blocks
Row 4: 3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, *1sl st in next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc; rep from * to end, turn – 4 blocks.
Row 5: with YB, 6ch, 1dc in 4th ch from hk, 1dc in each of next 2 ch, *1sl st in 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 5 blocks.
Row 6: rep row 4 – 6 blocks.

Work even as folls:
Row 7: 3sl sts across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, *1sl st into next 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3dc in same 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, in next st, 3ch, miss 2 sts, 1sl st, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 8: *3ch, 3dc in ch-sp, 1sl st in next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn – 6 blocks.
Row 9: rep Row 7, changing to YH on fourth sl st into first ch-sp.
Row 10 – 71: rep Rows 8 & 9 to last st, alternating between YB & YH every four rows.
Row 72: rep row 8.

Decreases
Row 73: 3sl sts across dc sts and into 3ch-sp, *3ch, 3dc in 3ch-sp, 1sl st into next 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn – 5 blocks.
Rows 74 – 77: rep row 73.
Sl st to corner, fasten off and sew in ends now.
Row 204: With RS facing, attach YB in corner, 217sc across main blanket: sc in top of 3 vertical dc sts and 3sc around the bar of horizontal sts, plus additional 1sc st at beginning.

BOBBLE ROWS

Rows 205 & 206: with YD, 1ch, hdc to end, turn.
Row 207 (ws): with YF, 1ch, 4sc, 1bobble, *8sc, 1 bobble; rep from * to last 5 sts, 5sc, turn.
Rows 208 & 209: with YD 1ch, hdc to end, turn.

BLOCKS

Row 210: 1ch, 9hdc in YE, *9hdc in YJ, 9hdc in YE; rep from * to last 10 sts, hdc in YJ to end, turn.
Row 211: 1ch, 10hdc in YJ, 9hdc in YE, *9hdc in YJ, 9hdc in YE; rep from * to end, turn.
Row 212: rep 210
Row 213: rep 211
Row 214: rep 210
Row 215: rep 211 changing to yarn J on last st, turn.
Rows 216 -221: continue in pattern, repeat the last 6 rows but switch colours around to begin with YJ followed by YE
Rows 222 & 223: with YA, 1ch, dc to end, turn.

THE MIXTAPE MEDLEY BORDER

Continue around the rest of the blanket and join with a sl st to the first st, do not turn.
If you are just a few stitches out on the sides, don’t worry, it won’t have an effect on the overall look.

Rnd 1: With YD, 1ch, sc to end – 217 sts, work along the side of the blanket as folls: 1sc in first dc, 2sc in 2nd dc (& further dc sts), work 3sc for every two rows in hdc, 1sc in each sc row. For C2C sections, work 3dc across vertical dc sts and 2sc in horizontal posts. – 334 sts.

Rnd 2: 1ch, 2dc in first st, dc to next corner st, *(2dc, 1ch, 2dc) in corner st, dc to next corner; rep from * twice more, 2dc, join by working 1hdc into the first st, do not turn.

Rnd 3: 1ch, 2dc in corner sp, dc to next corner, *5dc in corner sp, dc to end; rep from * three more times, 3dc in first corner sp, join with sl st to first st .

Fasten off and sew in the many many ends!

Mixtape Medley Blanket — Mixtape Medley lounging at home.

Wahoo, you are done! How does it feel? Honestly, I was so pleased when this one came off the hook. It was many months of planning and swatching. What a relief and a joy to see it finished.

You’re probably down at the botom of this page to find a totally free PDF that you can download and print. Well, you can find that just below. It’s one document with the pattern fully laid out week by week (obvs you can ignore the weeks and work it up as quickly as you like but they’re useful markers).

You are also most welcome to pop HERE to my Ko fi account. That’s if you fancied buying me a lil treat! Or check out my other patterns on the Free Pattern Page here on my blog, as well as Ravelry, Etsy and Lovecrafts.

Cheers! xxx

The downloadable PDF is here:

US TERMS Mixtape Medley Blanket Final Pattern Download

Easy C2C Crochet Cowl. Free Pattern

January 8, 2022January 8, 2022crochet1 Comment

Corner to Corner Cowl

This c2c crochet cowl pattern featured in a Mindful Makes supplement from Mollie Makes magazine a few years ago. I had forgotten about it entirely. The other day, however, I was chatting with a couple of fellow designer friends and both of them said they intended on revisiting past patterns this year. It’s a really good New Year intention and I fancy jumping on that bandwagon! (Most designers have a backlog of projects they sit on that aren’t quite ready for whatever reason).

With the feeling of the January doldrums rolling in, I have found the perfect pattern to revisit. It’s a gentle introduction to the crochet c2c stitch, which is ideal for a beginner crocheter, or it’s also a really nice pattern if you’re just looking for something easy and calming to work on for a few hours.

Please pop down to the bottom of the post for a quick C2C guide.

What you need to Crochet a Cowl

I used a variegated, colour changing yarn: King Cole Cotswold Chunky (80% acrylic/20% wool, 100g/130m per ball). You will need four balls in Broadway (2381), which should leave some leftovers, I used the leftover to make pom poms. I wish I had a photo of them against the cowl to show how lovely they looked!

A 5.5 mm (US I/9) crochet hook. If you find your fabric is a bit stiff try a 6mm.

Don’t forget a darning needle to sew in any ends and sew the ends of the cowl together.

Additional Info

Finished size: 43 x 40 cm (17 x 16 inches).

Abbreviations (UK terms – see notes below on swapping to US terminology):
beg beginning, ch chain, ch-sp chain space, dc double crochet (US SC), prev previous, rep repeat, ss slip stitch, st(s) stitch(es), tr treble (US DC), yrh yarn round hook.

Tension
Tension is not particularly important for this project. If after a few rows, the fabric works up a bit stiff, try going up a hook size to create looser stitches.

Special Stitches: The Crab stitch
This is used to snaz up the edging a bit. Essentially it’s a double crochet stitch worked in reverse. Crocheting from left to right can feel slightly skewy at first but once you have a consistent rhythm it’s actually quite good fun to do. And it’s quick!
Here’s how to do it: Insert hook in the st to the right, yrh and pull through st, yrh and pull through both loops.

Notes

Make your cowl by crocheting a long rectangle and sewing ends together.
Once the main piece is complete, the crab stitch is added to both lengths before pinning out and steam blocking the fabric. (I like blocking as I think it improves most crochet but you can probably get away without doing it here).
1 block = 3ch and 3tr.
C2C is incredibly versatile and keeping the stitch plain showcases its beautiful texture. But there’s nothing stopping you from adding stripes of different colours, or how about adding a fancier border to give it a whole new personality?!
You can make it as long or as deep as you like by adding more rows before reaching the second corner. In addition, chuck in more rows before starting to decrease to the final corner.
The pattern is written in UK terms but, I promise, c2c is the easiest of stitch patterns to swap to US terms. Just remember that the main pattern is US double crochet stitches and not trebles. When you work row 1 of the edging, that’s a foundation of SC stitches you’re working, not dc.

C2C Crochet Cowl Pattern

Row 1: Ch6, 1tr in 4th ch from hook, 1tr in next 2 sts, turn. [1 block]

Row 2: Ch6, 1tr in 4th ch from hook, 1tr in next 2 sts, ss into the 3ch-sp of prev row, ch3, 3tr into same 3ch-sp, turn. [2 blocks]

Row 3: Ch6, 1tr into 4th ch from hook, 1tr in next 2 sts, *ss into next 3ch-sp of prev row, ch3, 3tr in same 3ch-sp; rep from * to end, turn. [3 blocks etc]

Row 4 -18: Rep Row 3. [18 blocks at Row 18]

Row 19: Ss along the first 3 sts and into the first 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3tr in 3ch-sp, continue making blocks in each 3ch-sp to the end, turn. [18]

Row 20: Repeat Row 3, ending with 1ss in the last 3ch-sp (ie. do not make the last block), turn. [17 blocks & dec by 1 block each row]

Rep Rows 19 & 20 six more times

Row 33: Ss along the first 3 sts and into the first 3ch-sp, 3ch, 3tr in 3ch-sp, continue making blocks ending with 1ss into the last 3ch-sp, turn. [17 blocks].

Row 34 – 49: Rep Row 33 (decreasing by 1 block per row).

Ss into each of the last 3 sts and into the corner.

Edging
Work along the length of the piece.
Row 1 (a foundation row to work the crab stitch into): Ch1 (does not count as a st), 2dc in horizontal bars of each tr, 1dc in each of the 3 vertical tr, do not turn. [80]

Row 2: Ch1(does not count as a st), crab stitch along to end.

Fasten off and reattach yarn to the other side. Rep Rows 1 & 2. Fasten off.

Blocking and Finishing

For extra drape it’s good to block your work. Pin the crochet onto foam blocking boards, (I used to lay a towel down on the carpet to pin on that but please don’t do this because you might ruin your carpet or poshest towels). Then, using an iron or steamer, carefully steam block ensuring not to melt any acrylic fibres. Hold an iron too close to acrylic and you’ll have ruined all your hard work. Once it’s dry, fold it in half with the right sides facing. Then, using a mattress stitch or whip stitch, sew the short ends together. Turn right side out.

Voila! You now have a finished corner to corner crochet cowl to snuggle into! Wahey!

If you enjoyed this free crochet pattern, please feel free to check out some of my other free patterns HERE.

How to Crochet the C2C Stitch: A Guide

This is just a quick glance at the Corner to Corner stitch. I hope you can see that the C2C stitch is just about building blocks. As the name suggests, start in one corner, make loads of lovely blocks and then decrease to finish at the opposite corner.

Although it might look tricky, it is actually one of the easiest and quickest crochet stitches to work up. The down side though is that it is the very first few stitches that can discombobulate. I know cos I remember learning!

Basically, each block is made up of three chains and 3 UK tr (US dc) stitches. When building blocks row by row, the first block of the row is in an increase and worked into a chain of 6. Each subsequent block is then anchored to the work by slip stitching into a 3ch-sp of the previous row.

Once you have the width you need, you can either decrease from this point to create a square, or carry on working rows without adding a new block every row. Continue the increases but balance them out by ending one block early on the other end of the row (a decrease). This keeps the block count to the same number of blocks per row for as many rows as you need.

Decrease to the other corner by chaining 3 at the beginning rather than 6. Finish with the row with a decrease too, and make 3 slip stitches across and slip st into the neighbouring block’s 3 ch-sp to get to the start of a new row.

Clear as mud?!

If time allows I would love to record a tutorial for this one day. A super simple beginner’s vid. But in the meantime, I do have a video tutorial for a different c2c cowl (the Apres Ski hat & cowl set) I made a few years ago. It has colour work and I assume you know the basics when talking through how to make it.

8 Top Tips for Working with Mohair Yarn.

January 4, 2022January 5, 2022crochet11 Comments

Mohair Yarn is the Fluffiest!

Over the last couple of years the popularity of mohair yarn has grown monumentally. Creating the very best of halos, it is the ultimate in warm and fluffy yarn.

Yarny projects can be expensive due the mix of fibres used (mohair is angora goat, with a blend of silk), costs can go stratospheric when holding the yarn double. Therefore, spending money on, and using, mohair can take quite the leap of faith, especially when it’s not always the easiest to work with (hello frogging!). But it’s brilliant and totally worth the risk. Soft, warm and fluffy, the comfort levels are to the extreme!

My fave, holding mohair with a non fluffy yarn.

Alternative Yarns to Mohair

Mohair isn’t compatible with everyone. Affordability aside, it can cause allergies and itching, which is no fun at all. Fluffy yarn is fluffy yarn and the tips below apply to yarns that are others fibres too. Over the last few months I’ve tried a few alternatives and you definitely can get the floof without using mohair. Alpaca is great and easily available. The yarns similar to mohair are often brushed alpaca. You can also get brushed acrylic too but I’ve not tried that yet. The options are quite plentiful. Would a blog post about the ones I’ve used be helpful?

Anyway, if you have decided on a fluffy crochet or knitting project then check out these useful tips…

Fluffy Yarn Top Tips

Frogging Yarn

Let’s start with a painful one because if you make a mistake in your project then frogging (undoing all your beautiful stitches) is a frustrating and sometimes impossible process. If you find that you have to rip back your work, do it slowly. Really really slowly. Never rip/yank/tug. Doing so will tighten the grip of all those flyaway fibres and you will end up with a horrible knot. Or it will break because you’ve pulled too hard. Instead, slowly coax each stitch apart at a snail’s pace. It seems ridiculous but it’s worth being super patient over.

Lace-weight on its own is hardest to undo. Chunky yarn is a bit easier. When held double with a non-fluff yarn, it’s almost tolerable! It’s best done “fresh,” the longer you leave it, the more likely it is that the fibres will felt together.

I’ve heard that putting it in a freezer before frogging helps but I haven’t tried it.

Choose Simple Patterns

This tip helps to avoid any fractious frogging. Complicated stitches are easy to mess up and difficult to undo. The main star of the show when using fluff is the fluff itself, therefore a simple garment or shawl shows off the yarn without any distractions.

Go Up a Hook/Needle Size

With all that crazy halo, stitches can be hard to see. So, for example, try a 5.5mm instead of a 5mm. A larger hook/needle is often required for mohair patterns anyway but do play around to see what you prefer. I found it also creates a nice lacy look too. Plus the flyaway fibres sort of fill in gaps.

Hold the Yarn Double

After trying a few different ways of using mohair and brushed alpaca, I have discovered that this is my favourite way of using it. A gossamer lace-weight held with a merino 4ply or DK produces a beautifully soft fabric that feels super luxurious.

I used this method in the Wheatfields shawl and I love it!

a crochet shawl made with mohair yarn and 4ply merino — The **Wheatfields shawl** is Austermann lace-weight mohair held with a hand-dyed 4ply merino from **Flyy Dyed Yarns**.

Use Stitch Markers

If I can get away with not using stitch markers then I will. I am lazy, life is too way short for undoing, moving, and rejoining a stitch marker. Or worse, multiple stitch markers! However, they are really useful for when stitches are hard to see. Use the stitch markers!

Try Budget Yarn First

If cost is an issue, try a cheaper yarn to experiment with (and a smaller project ). If you like it and you’re happy, move on to bigger goals. The Drops brand have both mohair and alpaca yarns that are budget friendly. I recently made hair scrunchies with a yarn from Flying Tiger that was perfect for a cute hair accessory. It was about £2.25 for a ball of 25 grams (the standard sized ball for mohair yarns). I used a scrunchie pattern from Lottie & Albert’s new crochet book.

crochet hair scrunchies made with different types of mohair yarn — Trying different types of fluffy yarn. Going clockwise from the top: Mustard (“curry”) is Drops mohair, the green is chunky kid silk from MYPZ, lilac and peach both Flying Tiger, the Coral is brushed alpaca silk, the teal (“verdigris”) is Rowan Alpaca classic

Buy an Extra Ball of Yarn

If budget allows, it might be useful to buy an extra ball for swatching. When designing, I will buy an extra ball so I have the freedom to work up a few swatches without the fear of using up yarn that will go into the final sample. I can play around with hook sizes and stitch patterns to see what works and what doesn’t before getting stuck into the actual sweater or shawl.

Or, buy one ball first, swatch it and see if you actually want to use it before buying a sweater quantity! It might save a few quid if you learn that it’s a bit too scratchy against your skin.

Try Simpler Stitches

This one is for those of you who might want to design with mohair and is personal preference rather than a hard and fast rule. With a larger hook size than normal the stitches work up looser and drapier. A loose single crochet stitch or perhaps an extended SC look really effective, much more than you might think. By all means, go for different stitches if that’s your aesthetic but the nature of the yarn is that it does the talking and overly intricate stitches confuse things too much. Think small, dainty stitches as opposed to treble heavy. Whatever floats your boat.

And those are some tips I’ve come up with from my adventures of working with mohair yarn. Oh, and alpaca fluff too! I hope you find them useful. Have you got any tips you’ve like to share? Perhaps I’ve missed something that would be super useful to add. Let me know in the comments below!

Cheers. x

I used a chunky mohair from MYPZ to make this version of the **Perfect Cardigan**.

Crochet Christmas Sweater. Festive C2C!

November 27, 2021November 27, 2021crochet4 Comments

Oh Christmas sweater, oh Christmas sweater, how lovely are your pixels!

Sweater? Jumper? Either way, here we have a free crochet pattern (borderline recipe) to satisfy your festive corner to corner compulsions.

I have finally managed to put together a video for you so that you can make your very own crochet Christmas sweater / Christmas jumper using the C2C crochet stitch. It’s super easy to make if you’re familiar with the corner to corner stitch. I would argue that this is an intermediate project and suitable for beginners who are patient and keen to learn a few new techniques.

Below, I have broken down all the essential info you need to make your own crochet jumper but please beware, I haven’t written this as a traditional pattern. It’s a guide, similar to the JW Anderson cardigan that I worked up last year. Actually, tell a lie, this one has waaaay more detail. The video tutorial is HERE. I have also created an ad-free PDF you can download including charts for 9 sizes. You can find that HERE on Ravelry and HERE on Etsy.

Yarn, Hooks and other Things you Need

To make a jumper of your own, you will need Paintbox Woolmix Aran [this is an affiliate link so if you buy via the link I receive a minimum of 5% of the cost]. I bought 10 balls of the main colour for size 3, Vanilla Cream, and used nearly all of it! The numbers below are estimates based on the weight of the sample size.

Size	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Est. yarn weight in grams	749	883	985	1005	1167	1230	1369	1540	1606
Balls needed	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	16	17

Also required are a few metres of each of the five contrasting colours for the motif section. You could always use just one colour for the motif if you don’t want to buy whole balls of each colour just for a few metres.

I used a 3.75mm hook. I have average tension. This hook, with this particular yarn, creates a closed fabric that is not so tight that it feels stiff.

Oh, and stitch markers are helpful. I use them to pin pieces together.

Ideally you want to print out the C2C colour chart. Grab a pencil for crossing off each row as you go.

A decent needle for sewing everything together is also required.

Grading & Sizing your own Crochet Christmas Jumper

It is pretty important to make sure your Christmas sweater is going to fit before picking up a hook and buying loads of yarn. Let me try and provide you with as many tools as possible to work out a size that will fit you.

The sample I made is nearest to a UK 12 but after a bit of wear I suspect it may stretch to a 14. I broke the rules and didn’t block! If you are in between sizes you may wish to make the smaller size.

First things first, it is a very good idea to work up a swatch. You can use this swatch to determine how many C2C blocks you’ll need to work. Bear in mind that every 6.5 blocks is a measurement of 10 cm (4 inches). This will help you work out how many C2C blocks across you need your jumper to be. Work up a C2C square that’s 12×12 blocks to ensure you have a decent amount of fabric to get an accurate measurement. To be fair, you might get away with 11×11 if you’re feeling lazy!

A useful trick is to find a favourite jumper and measure it. How many blocks will you need to get the same width and length?

Size	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
To fit Bust (inches)	28 – 30	32 – 34	36 – 38	40 – 42	44 – 46	48 – 50	52 – 54	56 – 58	60 – 62
To fit Bust (cm)	71 – 76	81 – 86	91.5 – 96.5	101.5 – 106.5	111.5 – 117	122 – 127	132 – 137	142 – 147	152 – 158
Width (back) in cm	41	47	53	59	65	71	77	83	89
Length in cm	50	52	56	52	54	54	54	56	56
Body Blocks across	29	33	35	37	39	41	43	45	47
Body Blocks down	27	27	29	29	29	31	31	31	31

Corner to Corner Chart

Stitchfiddle is such a good tool for creating crochet C2C charts. If you’re making a different size to mine you can find the charts in the ad-free PDF on either Ravelry or Etsy. Or try creating your own design chart. Be careful, chopping and changing design ideas is addictive and before you know it, you’ll have lost hours by fiddling about!

Working the Corner to Corner Stitch

If you’re an absolute beginner, then this actually isn’t too bad of a C2C project. However, I do assume you have the crochet basics under your belt. I don’t plan on writing specific corner to corner instructions, instead, I demonstrate how to work a swatch in the video.

The basics of of corner to corner are that you build up each row one block at a time. When it’s time to stop building your blocks, you decrease until you reach the opposite corner. However, none of the pieces are exactly square. After building enough blocks to reach the first corner, you then work even by only increasing on one side to create the rectangle shape. Decreasing is my fave bit as it’s the race to the finish line!

Crochet Sweater Pieces

The pieces of your Crochet Sweater are made separately and sewn together.

Main body

The front and back are the same except for the colourful motif on the front. As you know from diligently watching all of the video, I made my front panel upside down to get the colour work done & dusted before the easy stuff could commence. This is why the charts are upside down.

Once you have the corner to cornering done, you can work a Join As You Go rib. I love this bit! Check out the video for the demo on how it’s done. I’ll try and remember to add the timestamps on YouTube for all these useful sections.

For the front piece I snipped the yarn from the main body piece and reattached to the right top corner. Work 3 sc in each vertical block and 2 sc in the bar of the stitch that lays horizontally. When working the back you can just turn, you don’t need to cut the yarn.

Snip again (both front & back) to reattach to the top right side. I think I decided on 11 stitches for the ribbing, so chain 12 to begin. All hdc (UK htr) sts are worked into the front 3rd loop of the st below.

Row 1: 1hdc in 2nd ch from hook and the rest of the chains to end, slip stitch in next 3 stitches of main body, turn to work back up the ribbing.

Row 2: Miss 3 sl sts, 11hdc in front 3rd loop of sts, turn.

Row 3: 1ch, 11hdc in front 3rd loop of sts, sl st in next 3 sts of main body, turn.

Rep Rows 2 & 3 across. You might end on Row 2 or Row 3 depending on how many stitches your foundation row is. It doesn’t matter which!

Sleeves

My sleeves (size 3) are 23×28 blocks. Look at the chart below and you’ll see how many blocks wide to make your sleeves. Don’t worry too much about sleeve length for different sizes. I often make the sleeves the same length across several sizes because our arms aren’t drastically different in length. If you know you have shorter arms, or they’re longer than average, then allow for that, add or remove a row. However, you will want wider sleeves if you’re after a bigger jumper.

Size	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Sleeve Length (from under arm to wrist) in cm	48	48	48	48	48	48	48	48	48
Sleeve depth at underarm in cm	18.5	21.5	21.5	21.5	25.5	25.5	29.5	33.5	33.5
No. of Blocks for sleeve length (cuff not inc)	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23	23
No. of sleeve blocks across (total)	26	28	28	28	32	32	38	42	42

Cuffs

Make 2, obvs. I worked a foundationless chain of 25 stitches and worked 22 rows in hdc (UK htr) in the front third loop. It’s in the vid but you can also find the foundationless start HERE as a separate video tutorial.

My wrists are a skinnyish 14cm circumference. Add 2 rows for every centimeter.

Sew the cuff ends together to get them ready to ease into the sleeve.

Waistband

Whatever your size jumper, make the waist band approx 10cm (4 inches) smaller than the circumference of the main body of the jumper. Reducing the circumference here brings the jumper in to create a bit more shaping. I worked 11 stitches for 120 rows of ribbing for my size 3, hold it up against the main body to check you’re happy with the length of yours. This was very much an eyeballing task.

Work the ribbing in one length to go around the circumference of the jumper, then sew the ends together.

Jumper Construction

All your pieces are finished, now it’s time to put it all together. So near yet so far! Exciting stuff!

Make sure all sewing is done on the wrong side of your jumper. Pay attention. Double check. Triple check that right sides are facing each other. It is guaranteed I will get this wrong at least once in any garment I make! Unpicking is par for the course for me but please try and do better than my efforts!

Below is a visual image of the steps of construction. Basically, sew the shoulders together first. I went for 10cm at each shoulder tab and I’m happy with that. More or fewer stitches will be required depending on what size you make.

Then sew the open sleeves to the shoulders. I don’t need to spell it out to make this evenly, equally spaced and at the centre of the shoulder. Fold the whole lot over, right sides facing, so you can sew the arms and body together. Voila!

Next up is to attach the ribbing on the sleeves and waistband.

For the sleeves, gather them at the wrist by creating a foundation round of sc stitches (UK dc) around the opening. Work 1 sc over each bar of the horizontal dc (UK tr) stitches and 2 sc into each of the vertical blocks. This brings in the sleeves a bit to make it easier to attach the ribbing. Then use plenty of stitch markers to hold the cuff in place whilst you sew it on. You will probably find the video useful for this bit.

Easing in the waistband is far easier. Use stitch markers to hold it in place here too.

I forgot to draw the neck ribbing on the top two pics. It’s supposed to be there. Sorry!

Overview: How to Crochet a C2C Sweater

Much like the GB Bake Off final, I have taken away some of the instructions. Please refer to the charts to determine how many blocks across & down you need to work to make your size. And watch the video to see how to make everything! Purchase the ad-free version on Ravelry or Etsy.

Step 1: Make a gauge swatch! 12×12 blocks should do it.

Step 2: Make your C2C pieces – 1 back, 1 front (both the same number of blocks), sleeves x2.

Step 3: Add join as you go ribbing to the tops of the main body – see video tutorial.

Step 4: Make ribbing for cuffs and waistband. Work the waistband so that it’s roughly 10cm (4 inches) shorter than the main body of your jumper.

Step 5: Sew shoulders together.

Step 6: Sew sleeves to shoulders.

Step 7: Fold in half, right sides facing, sew along sleeves and down body, both sides.

Step 8: Add the foundation to the sleeves and ease in the cuffs.

Step 9: Ease in waistband. There’s no need for a foundation round here.

Step 10: Blocking? You can if you want. A light steam block is my recommendation but I’m going to let the wearing of it do the job.

The End

How did you get on with your C2C Christmas sweater!?

Stashtober 21. Stash Busting Crochet!

September 28, 2021September 28, 2021crochet2 Comments

Stashtober 21

Do you know what will never not be popular? Stash busting! The art of using up yarn scraps and leftovers so nothing is wasted. We all have stash hidden somewhere in the house and rather than keeping it tucked away, how about getting the whole lot out and using it!?

Busting your stash can be a real feel good experience. It can also lead to an absolute dog’s dinner of a disaster but let’s just say that we all learn from those situations and move on. Using up every last scrap is hugely satisfying and there are a number of crochet patterns out there to aid you in your exciting mission.

I was watching Claudia Carpenter’s crochet vlogcast on You Tube the other day (I’m sure you know Crochet Luna). I am pretty sure she said “No CALs”. It made me laugh when, just a couple of days later, she got in touch with a handful of designer friends to ask, how about a stash busting Crochet Along? We’ll call it Stashtober!

Crochet Along

For a general overview on what a CAL is go HERE .

Crochet Alongs are extremely popular these days, in fact, I’m taking part in another one right now. Have you seen the Mixtape Medley? It’s a crochet blanket I designed with Knitcraft and I see it as the ultimate stash buster. We’re currently on Week 2 and I’m mentioning it as it fits in perfectly with Stashtober 21.

But I’m not going to talk about that CAL because this post is about Stashtober 21! So, should you wish to partake, Claudia’s idea is for crocheters to choose a pattern or many patterns from the selection of designers she has invited to take part. One of them is me! To make life a bit easier I’ve put together a bundle on Ravelry especially for this event. You can find it HERE. I added patterns (both free and paid) that I thought would be great for using up lots of lovely stash. Especially for Stashtober, during the month of October, you can get 25% off any of my patterns on either Ravelry or Etsy. At the checkout please use the code: STASH21

If you don’t fancy making one of my designs, there are other contributing designers with the perfect pattern waiting for you.

Mixtape Medley, a blanket perfect for stash busting

The CAL Designers

Other crochet designers taking part are some of my absolute favourite people in the crochet community. A lot of us have known each other for a long time and are firm friends.

Claudia is the brains behind it all and has a couple of designs that would work brilliantly for Stashtober. I really enjoyed making Encanto, a scarf with lots of lovely twiddly stitches. Pop over to her Etsy shop to peruse the good things.

Fay of the Crochet Circle Podcast is a champion of artisanal crochet design. I wouldn’t mind working up Loft in a collection of colourful yarn. Crochet and stripes are a brilliant match.

Hannah from the Cozy Cottage Crochet is so lovely. Lovely Hannah! Pop over to the Cozy Cottage crochet for a Ravelry chatter thread for the CAL. And check out her designs while you’re at it.

Caleisha of the Quirky Monday Craftcast designed my favourite scarf of last year (or was it the year before?), the Just Feel Festive shawl. I used loads of DK acrylic scraps. It was totally worth all the ends.

Clarisabeth from Crochet Cakes has fab designs to choose from. If I have the time, I absolutely have to make some of Clarisa’s Vintage Wave socks. Check them out.

Michelle aka Dora Explored/Dora Does, has garment making savvy by the bucketful. I might find myself making her latest design dedicated to busting stash, the Waste Not, Want Not sweater. There a couple of other designs that are perfect for stash busting too.

Heather from HG Designs is all about the granny square. The granny square is the most famous stash buster of all time and Heather has some awesome granny designs out there. Making Revival was an absolute joy!

We are an eclectic bunch, it’s guaranteed that you will find a huge variety of crochet styles between us and therefore, you are bound to find the perfect pattern.

Stash Bust Rules

Fear not, there aren’t really any rules other than the projects you make must be made from yarn you already have. Do not buy new yarn! That is it! Also please ensure that your project is not already over 50% complete before the 1st October. So WIPs do count as long as it’s not close to being finished. And don’t forget to choose designs from the crochet champs above.

On the 23rd of October Claudia is also hosting a live Zoom chat. It’s 8pm BST. I have something else in my diary that day but I would love to be there so I’m going to see if I can pull some strings!

Double whammy. My Dreckly mittens with Heather’s Revival jumper.

Crochet Community

There are no prizes for this CAL, that’s not the point. But there are loads of other great reasons to dive right in.

This is an opportunity to create the satisfying feeling of putting old yarn to good use. It’s about community. And also, perhaps it’s introducing you to a designer who you were previously unfamiliar with. There are so many good reasons to take part that prizes aren’t needed! These aspects are rewarding enough, don’t you think? What’s usually used as a CAL prize? It’s new yarn! That’s the total opposite of stash busting!! Not gonna happen for Stashtober!!

I love that Crochet Alongs are community led, it’s better than any other prize I know. You can be as active or as quiet as you choose. Perhaps you’re happy to just loiter and see what others are making. Or, you might fancy chatting on Ravelry or Instagram, or wherever else! It’s entirely up to you. This should be the ultimate No Pressure CAL.

Hopefully we will see you and your makes throughout October! Let us know what you’re making, what stash you’re using etc. We would all love to hear from you. #Stashtober21

Cheers. x

Mixtape Medley CAL. A New Crochet Blanket Pattern

September 16, 2021January 23, 2023crochet13 Comments

Mixtape Medley Crochet Along

Hallooooo! Happy autumn!! What better way to celebrate a new season than to crochet yourself a new cosy blanket? Fancy it?! The Mixtape Medley blanket is ideal for mixing up classic stitches that you probably already have in your crochet repertoire. The only thing that’s really different is that they’re all brought together as one, with a jazzy, stash busting colour palette.

When I was asked by Knitcraft back in April to come up with ideas for an 8 week Crochet Along I knew exactly what I wanted to do. The brief was to create a design that would introduce beginners to new stitch combinations with a palette that used a variety of different shades (not too rainbow bright, not too autumnal). Much like the rest of my design work, I wanted this to be a bit different!

When you think of classic crochet, what stitches do you come up with? Granny is there, isn’t it? Bobbles too? And I bet those who know me will immediately say Corner to Corner!! It’s all in the Mixtape Medley! And recent favourites such bold colour blocking and plaid feature as well (I’ve been calling it plaid but perhaps it’s gingham?). I desperately wanted a ripple stitch in it but that wasn’t to be. The inevitable concertina effect would have been a nightmare. Instead, I invented a new puff wave stitch. The undulating waves are most welcome, plus there’s the added bonus of delightful texture with some plump puffs!

How to find the Blanket Pattern

You’re probably here to find out more than just the back story so let me tell you what’s what. Aaaages a go I wrote a blog post to explain what a CAL actually is, it’s HERE if you’d like to find out more about crochet alongs (bear in mind it is an ancient blog post though).

You can get get your hands on a copy of the FREE PATTERN PDF with US Crochet terminology, it’s HERE.

This Mixtape Medley Crochet Along is hosted by Knitcraft on the Hobbycraft website in their Ideas section. Knitcraft is the yarny arm of Hobbycraft. Over the next few weeks the written pattern will be released bit by bit so that you can enjoy a few hours of crochet each week. And the best bit is that this is a free crochet pattern!! FREE! Fully tech edited and tested as well, which I love. Everything has been extremely well thought out.

Don’t forget to share your makes on Instagram with the hashtags #MixtapeMedleyCAL and #MixtapeMedleyComp

Now with US terminology! Go HERE to find the written pattern in all one place!

Crochet video tutorials

At the beginning of August I travelled along the coast to a studio in Southampton to record video tutorials. We recorded videos for each stitch and included other helpful bits of information too. It was a really interesting and exciting day! Not something I’ve done before. A few weeks later, once the videos had been put together, I watched them through so I could write a script. Then, it was back to the studio to record the sound.

Anyway, this is a long-winded way of saying the video tutorials are HERE! You might notice that I look a bit like deer in headlights and that’s OK. I may seem super chilled out in my podcasts (usually amateurishly filmed at home in me jammies) but that’s a completely different kettle of fish. No hot studio lights, clapper boards or people you’ve never met wiring you up with a mic n stuff. The experience of working in a studio was awesome and nerves should never stop anyone from doing something new.

Crocheting Together

Seeing everyone getting their boxes of yarn is so exciting! As well as being able to buy the yarn kits from Hobbycraft in super special Mixtape Medley boxes (OMG they are totally gorgeous!), you could also bust your stash and go your own way with colours. This isn’t the kind of blanket where rules apply….well some rules do (count your stitches folks!)

Multiples are given so you could easily make adjustments to make it smaller, or bigger if this isn’t big enough (it’s a single bed sized blanket). I fancy a scarf version myself and hope to make one during the CAL. Hey, you could even get your nails done to match if you wanted to!

Well blow me down! Look at these nails from @the_squirrel_collective

I think that’s it for now. If you have any questions then ask away. I’ll try and get to them as soon as I can but the idea is that you can find all the info you need on the Hobbycraft website so do go there first as details about yarn and sizing etc is all there.

Don’t forget that you can now find the pattern with US terms on my blog HERE.

Right, I’m off to work on some crochet. And maybe do my nails. Cheers. x