Washing Winter Away

Isn't it nice to finally see and feel the first signs of Spring? I'm looking forward to the temperature climbing into the 50's this weekend. Just about time to do some spring cleaning. Since it's National Crochet Month, here's a washcloth crochet pattern I worked up for some gift-giving during the holidays. I wanted a pattern that wasn't too feminine, but also wasn't a plain Jane. This is what I ended up with-it uses an easy spike/relief stitch and a simple border all around. While I made it to use as a washcloth, it could fit right in in the kitchen too. I used sportweight yarns, but really any weight could be used.

Knit Picks Simply Cotton Organic Sportweight yarn, Malted Milk and Ginger. You could crochet 2-3 cloths with one skein.

Berroco NaturLin, Oat and Chocolate. One skein makes one cloth, with a good amount left over, but not enough for 2 (in the size I made them).

Pattern: Open Ridge Washcloth
Dimensions 8 ½ inches by 8 ½ inches
Hook: G/4.0 mm
Yarn: Sportweight cotton or linen, such as Knit Picks Simply Cotton or Berroco Naturlin

Notes:
If you tend to hook tightly you may want to use a larger size hook for your chain row.
Work the chain at the beginning of each row loosely.
Increase or decrease the beginning chain row by even numbers in order to change the size of the cloth.
Any weight yarn will work-adjust the hook size and number of chains accordingly.

Instructions:
Chain 36 loosely.
Row 1: Sc in 2nd chain from hook, and 1 sc in ea ch to end. Turn.
Row 2: Ch 1, skip first sc, * skip next sc, hdc in next st, 1 hdc in space between last 2 st., * repeat from *to *, ending with 1 hdc in last sc. Turn.
Row 3: Ch 1, 1 sc in back loop of ea st, end with sc in the ch 1. Turn.
Repeat rows 2 and 3 until the cloth’s length is equal to its width, or to your desired size. End with row 3. Turn.

I added a simple edge of 2 rows of sc. Change it if you'd like!
Row 1: Ch 1, 1 sc in ea st across, 3 sc in the last stitch for a corner, sc evenly along each of the sides, continuing to place 3 sc in ea corner st. Sl st to first sc. Turn.
Row 2: Ch 1, 1 sc in first st of corner, place 3 sc in middle st of the corner, 1 sc in third st of corner, and continue 1sc in each st, and 3 sc in the middle st of each corner. Sl st to first sc. Fasten off.

Weave in ends and block lightly if needed.

I'm using my initial swatches as coasters. These were made with Elesbeth Lavold Hempathy. They look spring-like to me!

(Off to Ravelry to add the pattern there)

a girl, a bird, a wurm, and a medal

Or, the early bird gets the wurm?

the bird: my winter pigeon

Doesn't he look tough? The pigeon was a bit challenging to train. Fingering weight wool yarns, C hook.

the pigeon's cute backside

the Wurm: a squishy knit with Cascade 220, 1 skein, US 7 & 8 circular needles

my wurm pile

the medal: Ravelympics 2010 Skelegurumi (for crocheting the pigeon)

...and the girl gets them all.

bits & scraps

Winter Daisies Pillow:
Scraps of unfit (meaning too thin for rug hooking) wool fabric. A bit of crocheted daisy flowers, an abandoned scarf project (all those endless chains...). I used the incredibly easy envelope back pillow tutorial here.

Coral Strand Necklace:
A bit of Berroco Mica yarn to make a chained and slip stitched cord, with spare button and looped end. Some scrap yarn of Berroco Seduce yarn, leftover from my knit Baktus scarf. The jumping off point for the necklace is Coral, a free crochet pattern from Berroco. I wove the slipped cord through the holes of the Seduce Coral to make my Coral Strand. Depending on my mood, I can wear it spread out or scrunched up.

new boy in town

He sings, he's athletic, he looks good in red, he's

Homestar Runner!

Another brilliant design by Aleta Fera

Cowl Happy

I was totally happy when I received my very own Chickadee Cowl knit by my sister, Jackie. I love the colors. Sheep Shop 2 yarn if I remember correctly. Thanks, Jackie!

Then I was way happy at the beginning of this week when I finished knitting my Buttermilk Sky cowl designed by my sister, Bonnie. Knit in Berroco Pure Merino. Such a great texture and great fun to knit.

Cowl Happy

Crochet for a Winter's Day

I've been crocheting a few different items as I try out my Habu mystery yarn samples. The doily pattern is from the Kyuuto! Lacy Crochet. I love the claw-like petal/leaves and its simple design. The Habu yarn is a laceweight linen so I used a small 1.75 mm hook. The yarn has a beautiful natural color and texture and draped nicely with blocking.
Sometimes it's very satisfying to complete something from start to finish in just a matter of a couple hours. The Habu yarn I used for this simple necklace appears to be a silk paper/ribbon yarn. It's bronze color seemed to be the perfect compliment for some peach seed beads I had left over from a scarf. I played around with several hook sizes before deciding on a 1.75 mm hook for smaller chains. The necklace is long enough that it can be worn in single strands or doubled up around the neck.

This motif reminds me of a passion flower. I'm not sure what this will become. I had just enough of this yarn to make two circle motifs. I may combine it with some linen or wool fabric to make a brooch. Plenty of winter days left to ponder its use.

Squeezing in one more 2009 post

Thanks to a new laptop, I can end 2009 with a quick (and not terribly exciting) note. Christmas was spent in Florida's warmth visiting my mom and brother, and his family. My traveling project was a crocheted shawl that perfectly fit the bill - it was pleasant and quick and just needed some blocking when I got back home.
Pattern: Blue Jeans Shawl by Knottie by Nature
Yarn: Knit Picks Gloss Lace in Celery

My insect-loving nephew received a Rhinoceros Beetle, which spent a little time frolicking with some garden gnomes before being tagged and mounted.
Pattern: King of the Forest Rhinoceros Beetle

Happy New Year to You!

no more brown bagging it for me...

...now that I made a reversable Japanese inspired bag, perfect for carrying my lunch to work.

From the book, Linen, Wool, Cotton. A free project here.

little things on a rainy autumn day

A few small leaves, another sweet design from the Charming Crochet book.

The green leaf of KnitPicks Wool of the Andes kettle dyed worsted weight in Grasshopper.

The gold leaf of DMC perle cotton #5.

And the kitties? Found long ago amongst nails and screws in a "hardware store in a can" coffee can from my father.

Despite the chilly gray skies, my geranium continues to bloom bright pink . Its hot pink inspired me to pull out some Malabrigo Silky Merino I bought in the heat of the summer last year and begin to turn it into a flowery scarf.

Hempathy's Bounty

A skein of Hempathy is 153 yards. I've found it can go a long way, and that's even with yarn-eating crochet. After I made myself a Comet using the Tea Rose yarn, I still had alot left over. I added a crocheted edge to a gauze scarf. And I still had yarn left so I crocheted a necklace pouch to hold my eyeglasses or iPod Nano.

Even after that I had a bit of yarn left. I could have made a little flower or motif. Instead I crocheted this little bird from the Japanese book, Charming Crochet, that has no function other than hanging sweetly on my wall.

my berry stained hands

The last time I was at Webs I got some Berroco Comfort DK for swatching. When the fall weather arrived, I thought the yarn would be great for transitional fingerless gloves. They're not too hot for this time of year, are stretchy yet keep their shape well, and are just fun to wear. I didn't use a pattern. Using a F/3.75 hook, I just made a long enough chain to fit my hand, joined it for working in the round, then went round and round single crochet through the back loops, skipped some stitches and made some chains for the thumb hole, and continued round. I still have a good amount of yarn left for swatching.

My apologies, here's a really blurry photo of me wearing them. I seemed to have deleted the good photo! Oh well.

And, a beautiful woven cloth I was rewarded with from Missouri Trouble! It sits perfectly on my bedside table. It's a cotton and linen blend and the pattern is called Fig Leaf. Jenny wove a series of these mats in tribute to one of her weaving mentors, who before she died, had asked the weaving group to explore the pattern in memory of her. It's so nice to hear the stories that may be behind what people create.

Sunday's Rosy Hue

Made while watching the US Open. Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy, 2.75 mm hook. The stunning cloth underneath was a handwoven gift from my sister, Jenny.

New Comet Arrives

According to an old American Heritage Dictionary, the comet is “a celestial body having a solid head surrounded by a nebulous luminescent cloud and an elongated curved vapor tail arising when the head approaches the sun.” In the Middle Ages, the comet caused both fear and wonder.

In 1986's modern times, Halley's Comet swung by for an exciting visit.
In today's blogosphere, the comet arriving is a versatile wrist cuff. It's crocheted using a sportweight linen blend yarn and can be worn two ways. I'm sharing the pattern if you'd like a Comet to wrap around your wrist. (I'll be adding it to Ravelry shortly.)

Comet Wrist Cuff
Materials:
Berroco Naturlin, or similar sportweight yarn, scrap amts.
Hook size: F (3.75mm)
One 1 ½ inch jewelry ring-style bead, or O-ring, or washer
Two ½ inch buttons

Finished dimensions: overall length: 12.75 inches; width at widest point: 2 inches
Fits sm. to med. wrists
Gauge is not critical but work crochet tightly.

Set up row: slip stitch onto ring. Ch 1. 11 sc around ring. (carry tail behind and crochet over). Turn.
Rows 1-29: Ch. 1. Sc in each st. Turn. (11)
Row 30: Ch 1. Sc2tog in first 2 st. Sc in next 7 st. Sc2tog last 2 st. Turn (9)
Rows 31-33: Ch 1. Sc in ea. st. Turn. (9)
Row 34: Ch. 1. Sc2tog in first 2 st. Sc in next 5 st. Sc2tog last 2 st. Turn. (7)
Rows 35-37: Ch. 1. Sc in ea. st. Turn. (7)
Row 38: Ch. 1. Sc2tog in first 2 st. Sc in next 3 st. Sc2tog last 2 st. Turn. (5)
Rows 39-67: Ch. 1. Sc in ea. st. Turn. (5)
Row 68: Ch 5. Skip 4 st. Slip st. in last st. Fasten off.

Correction Update: If you printed out the pattern, please make sure your version lists Row 38 with sc in next 3 st. (originally stated 5-oops!)

Edge: With right side facing, join with slip st into 1st st. at ring’s edge. Ch 1. Slip st. through back loops evenly along edge to button loop. Slip st into ch sp. 5 sc into ch sp. Slip st into ch sp. Slip st through back loops evenly along other side to last st. at ring’s edge. Fasten off. Weave in ends.

Finishing: Sew buttons onto right side, approximately 2 and 4 inches from start of crochet at ring end.

Modifications:
Wrist size can be increased or decreased by adding or deleting rows in the 11sc. section (Rows 1-29)
If you only want to wear it one way, you can eliminate one button and decrease the length of the tail section (Rows 39-67).

© Betsey Sennott, 2009. For Non-Commercial, Personal Use Only.

You can see more views of the Comet Cuff on my Flickr photostream.

I'm into Metal

Not the heavy kind (although I do like Van Halen's Jump, but is Van Halen really heavy metal?). In any case, I seem to be attracted to the shimmery stuff lately. I think it makes for some cool-looking hyperbolic crochet.

The yarn is Berrocco Mica in the Abalone colorway. The motif is from Edie Eckman's Beyond the Square Crochet Motifs. It looks pretty good as a brooch also. I expect I'll be a metalhead for awhile. Sorry, Ma.