Recently, I completed a lapghan on commission for a lovely elderly lady. I did not follow any pattern, but made it up as I went along. I used a variegated yarn, and 4.5mm hook. Here is what the end result.
I am particularly pleased with how the edging came out . I used a surface crochet technique to create the beige edging. Here is a close up:
Hope it inspires you!
I came across this super soft thick yarn – the Katia Bambi range and fell in love with the colours as well the texture – it is so luxurious and velvety – and ideal for a baby blanket. So, I decided to make a modern granny square version and not being a fan of the traditional pink or blue, opted for a more neutral combination of lilac and yellow.
While the yarn is gorgeous, it is not very forgiving if you need to do any rework – so, avoid making mistakes :).
Hope it inspires you!
It’s been a while since I’ve published a post, but rest assured, I haven’t been crochet idle (ha ha – is that even a term?) – While I haven’t spent as much time as I would have liked on projects, here is a commission I recently completed.
A while back, I published a post with a free pattern for a froggie bonnet. I was asked if I could make a slight variation of that with the main differences being the straps are ribbed and are extension of the rib border. I also thought that the eye’s would look awesome with a bit of a sparkle, so decided to use a yarn with a gold strand through it.
The biggest challenge, believe it or not, was actually positioning the eyes. Once that was sorted, the bonnet finally made its way to it’s new owner, Amelie – and here she is!
It’s been quite a few years since I last knitted anything, as normally I prefer crochet. But, I came across this lovely yarn, and needed a project to use it for (I know – that’s the wrong order of doing things – i.e. you should have a project in mind, and then you find the material – but I’m sure crafters know exactly what I mean and are likely guilty of the same!)
Anyhow, the yarn I used is Katia’s Easy Jacquard – and it came with a free pattern (you can find it here: https://www.katia.com/EN/patterns-autumn-winter-woman-set-8030-430.html) . My version is somewhat different as I wanted a thicker scarf. To achieve that, I worked the whole scarf in rib stitch. See below:
Using 4.5mm needles, Cast on 46 stitches.
Row: Repeat (K2, P2) till end of the row.
Make as many rows as you like till the scarf is of the desired length. (I used the entire ball, and my scarf is pretty long)
This is an ideal pattern to follow while watching your favourite shows – if you are like me, I can’t just sit and watch a show, I have to be doing something as well.
Hope this inspires you to pick up your hooks or needles and get crafting!
I have completed many a crochet project -, some big, some small, some straight-forward, others quite complex , but I have not tried crochet jewellery before. So, first things first, I need more YARN – something a bit sparkly! Off to the yarn shop I trotted – and bought one of each colour available in the metallic Katia Gatsby range – it was too difficult to choose just one or two only – and you can never have too much yarn anyway!
Here are a few necklaces I made so far. I have used glass beads and mirror tiles in the pendant. The clasp is a magnetic clasp – so very easy to wear – the magnet is surprisingly strong, but I wouldn’t advise relying on that if the pendant is heavy. In my case, as the necklaces are pretty lightweight, these work perfectly:
Below are a few bracelets I made. Again I used the magnetic clasp. Note that I also used very small metal rings to attach the straps in the first 2 bracelets (I found these at the haberdashers and they are actually used for bras!). In the third bracelet, I added small glass beads as spacers. I would recommend having beading needles available, especially as the bead holes can be quite small. :
And finally, here are a few earrings I made. I used mostly cotton crochet yarn, and a 0.6 mm crochet hook for these. The very first pair I made can be seen in Picture 1 – I learnt a valuable lesson here – the earrings don’t “swing” and move as I would have liked them to. I added a few chains and created a long “neck” to the next pair (picture 3), but still didn’t get the desired movement. Next experiment was more successful and from that point onward, I added a bead between the hook and the earring – and this does the trick. All the earrings which have a bead straight after the hook have lovely movement. I have used sterling silver hooks for the earrings, and have used, mainly beads to add the “jewel” element. In Picture 6, you can see I have also included a button and a flower-shaped sequin to decorate further. Note, I crochet the beads in – i.e. I did not add these on later, but I must confess to gluing the sequin.
I hope you have enjoyed this post and hope I have inspired you to make some of your own jewellery! Would love to hear from you and see your creations!
Till later!
Hi all! I’m really pleased to share with you photos of my biggest project to-date – a large blanket which I adapted from the Fruit Garden design by Janie Crow (https://manjrisplace.wordpress.com/2020/08/17/fruit-garden-cal-complete/).
I made this as a special gift, so, of course, I couldn’t post any photos before it went to it’s new home.
It is much more spaced out that the original pattern, and I think that the plain squares actually (dare I say) “improve” the overall effect by giving each different flower room to shine.
I hope this inspires you to put your own twist on patterns! N.B. If anyone needs the pattern for the plain square, please drop me a line or comment below and I will write it up for you. Happy crafting!
Hey everyone! Hope you are all enjoying summer and safe ! I might have mentioned once or twice, or a hundred times that I love winter – I am totally a winter person. I love being able to snuggle with soft, warm woolly things – so it is no surprise that I make a lot of winter projects.
Firstly, a little disclaimer about the title of this post and the name of this pattern i.e. “The Virus Shawl” – this name and pattern has been around for years and has nothing to do with COVID-19.
I have made a few shawls so far, but it’s always been a challenge to properly show-case these without a model. I have asked politely, then begged and even tried to bribe my lovely daughter into being my model – but with no luck . So, I now am a proud owner of a mannequin!
Here is one of the shawls that I made . There are several free patterns available online. However, here is one you could refer to – it includes a written pattern in form of graph as well as YouTube videos for both right and left-handed crocheters. If you do try making this, I would love to see your creations! Please feel free to share in comments to this post : https://www.woolpedia.de/english/crochet-tutorials/shawl/
N.B. I used a variegated 4-ply yarn, and used a 4-mm hook.
Hi all! I’m really pleased to share with you photos of the completed lap blankets. It was great fun and to be honest, I’ve been feeling a bit at a loose end now that these are over.
I will definitely use some parts of this pattern (by Janie Crow) for other projects, such as cushion covers, but more on that when I actually do make them!
While I do have some smaller projects on the go, however, I am now on the lookout for the next big one….if anyone has any suggestions, please feel free to message me!
It’s been a while since I last posted – and it’s not because I have no projects completed or on the go, but sheer laziness on my part in taking photos of my work! I am much happier with a hook, or needle in hand than setting the scene and taking the pics! So today, I decided that, come what may, I needed to pick up my handy mobile phone and snap a few shots.
Anyway, back to the Janie Crow CAL which I started a while back – I had ordered the yarn pack for the light colour scheme as the other one was out of stock, but my heart was set on the dark scheme too.
Here is where I got to so far using the original colour scheme (n.b. the CAL is not yet over – we’re still around halfway)
As I could not find the yarn packs in stock for the dark scheme, I opted to find similar shades locally in a different brand of wool (Schachenmayr). Due to COVID-19 impact on shipping, not all colours were available , and not wanting to wait for more shipments to arrive, I went with a few alternatives. You can see the outcome below.
I have to say that I much prefer the quality and feel of the Schachenmayr acrylic yarn to the Stylecraft one. It feel a lot softer. The other difference I noted is the Schachenmayer yarn is a little thicker – so the end result is a bit larger – but I don’t mind that and I’m quite happy with the outcome.
I still have quite a stash of yarn, so maybe I will make yet another blanket in a totally different colour scheme of my own design 🙂
If you are following the same CAL, I would love to see your work! Please feel free to share .
I’m so happy with this gorgeous baby blanket which I made for a friend . It’s using the same technique as in my last post (Colourful Lapghan). Next up will be a cute little girls handbag…..keep a lookout for it!
Manjri's Place 