Thursday 24 August 2017

Crochet Star Wars Ewok

My youngest two grandchildren just love Star Wars and recently they were showing me a book about the films. I commented "oh that looks like a little teddy bear" to which they delighted in telling me they were Ewoks.

They looked so cute that I knew there would be a pattern out there somewhere so off I went to my favourite place, Ravelry and of course I found one! It is by Lucy Collin http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wicket-the-ewok

The pattern is very easy to follow although somehow I did manage to end up with 4 toes on the first one, but never mind, it will help the boys know who's is who's!

The hood did not come down as far as I wanted, it ended just at the bottom of the head,  so I just added more rows to make it longer:



 I used some King Cole Luxe Fur yarn that I had left over from something else, this was used for the face and ears however it is a nightmare to crochet with, you just can't see the stitches. I persevered on the faces but for the ears I made them in plain brown and then sewed the fur yarn over the front, it worked fine.

I used safety eyes and embroidered on the nose and mouth. 


This is the four toed one! 



I just know that my grandchildren are going to love these and can't wait to hand them over.

Really big thank you to Lucy for making this pattern and sharing it for FREE!

Happy crocheting!



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Saturday 12 August 2017

Amigurumi Tiny Sloth

This pattern for a tiny little Sloth is so cute I just couldn't resist having a go.


This is my finished Sloth as you can see it is very small and fits around your thumb. I made it in an hour or two.


I used very small safety eyes as I don't really like embroidering them on and they also give a nice shine. I placed the eyes through the face part before sewing it in place.






 

I then embroidered around them to give the slanted eye look and added a nose



Lovely pattern, easy to follow with excellent instructions.

Thank you The Twisted Crocheter!



Happy crocheting!



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Using Ravelry

I love Ravelry! - www.ravelry.com

Do you use it too?

There is so much available on this website that it is all too numerous to mention, so I will just give you my top five favourites and urge you to go and have a look around yourself.

1. Pattern search

You can search for patterns with lots of filters:
by just a simple one word search e.g. "cat" "amigurumi" "sweater" "coaster"
type of pattern - such as clothing or toys
by name of pattern
designer name
type of craft
yarn weight
hook or needle size
it's rating by others who have made it
search for free patterns only or paid ones too
search by yardage for pattern, if you know the yardage of your stash this helps you use it up.

There are many more options than those above, you are bound to find something to suit what you are looking for. You can also save your favourite search terms.

2. Favourite pattern

When you find a pattern you like you can add it to your favourites to find later.

3. Projects

Here you can save the projects you are currently working on, those you have finished or those you have given up on.
You can save details about it, add photos and notes, what yarn you used, what needle size, where you bought the yarn, link to pattern etc.
You can rate your experiences of the pattern and yarn too.

You can make your projects available to the public or just Ravelry members.

If you blog about your projects you can easilyadd a link to your blog post.

4. Contributions 

Here you can add your own patterns to share with others.

5. Library

Here you can save patterns that you have bought or downloaded for free so you can find them in the future. You can arrange them how you like - I like the 'bookshelf' option, it is easy to navigate and see what you have.

There is also an attached forum where you can discuss patterns and other topics. I haven't used this for chat myself but I did use it when having a problem with a pattern. A search bought up a discussion on the very problem I was having and I was able to get on with the pattern using the tips discussed.

There are tips, help, designers, links to events, messaging service to ask questions of those sharing their patterns. Yarns, books, hooks and other things to buy.

As you can see I love Ravelry and it is my first port of call if I want a pattern.

Here's a good example - last week my grandsons were talking about Star Wars and Ewoks. I said they looked like little teddy bears! I immediately thought "I bet someone has a pattern somewhere to make one" and lo and behold I found one almost straight away! I am currently making one each for my youngest two Star War fans. :)

Another feature I just remembered which I love, is the bookmarklet. Add a Ravelry bookmark to your browser and if you see a pattern on the internet that you like, simply click on it and if the pattern is in the Ravelry database you will be taken straight to it so you can add it to your projects or favourites. Details of how to add a bookmarklet are here: http://www.ravelry.com/blog/110

I hope you go and have a look and find it as amazing as I do.

Happy crafting!


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Thursday 10 August 2017

Tutorial for making small Pom Poms with a Fork

Have you ever needed some very small pom poms but don't have any small enough or the shops are shut?

Here's how to make your own using just a fork - yes, just a normal everyday dining fork!

It is very quick and easy to do, the video speaks for itself so there is not much else for me to say except have fun making your own tiny pom poms.




Happy crafting!



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Blake the Orangutan from Edward's Menagerie


Having seen mentions of the book Edward's Menagerie by Kerry Lord (Toft Alpaca) in quite a few places I was lucky enough to find a copy in my local library.

The library is a great place to find craft books and it gives you the opportunity to try before you buy.

When I had first finished him I didn't add any features but later thought he looked a little sad, as you can see adding just nostrils and mouth made a real difference.



If you don't want to borrow it you can buy it online at Amazon in both Kindle and paperback format: http://amzn.to/2vmMU6N

There are over 40 animals to make and I chose to have a go at Blake the Orangutan

The patterns all use a basic body and leg design with extra rows added or taken away depending on which animal you choose to do. I did find this a bit of a chore having to keep turning from one page, with the basic body parts on, then back to the pattern page for the specific instructions for the animal. I can see why they have done it that way though as it saves printing costs of having to write out each animal individually.

The pattern for Blake was easy to follow, what they call the 'fur' stitch I call the loop stitch - we all have different names for our stitches! If you would like to learn how to do the stitch I have a tutorial here, it is really easy once you know how: https://youtu.be/L-8g1HRjt1s
  
It was tricky remembering all the different parts to each round so I found it easier to write them down and tick them off as I went along. For instance you have to work a loop on every third or fourth stitch but at the same time increase or decrease in the round every few stitches so it is easy to forget where you are if you get distracted and miscount. 

Here is an example of my row count - we all have different ways of working and this works for me, you might find it useful:

In the top example V = increase in that stitch
0 = make a loop stitch - you therefore sometimes work a loop stitch on the second of the increased stitches.

In the bottom example:

The rectangle around two stitches [] = work those two together.
0 = make a loop stitch - you therefore sometimes work a loop stitch at the same time as working two stitches together.



I used Boyes double knit, it is a good quality yet cheap yarn. I used less than 100g for the main body and just oddments for the rest.

Here is my version of Blake - I've called him Pongo because that is the Latin name for Orangutan! :) Again these are before and after features were added, I'm sure you will agree he looks a lot nicer with a smile :)



Would I make it again? - Yes probably but I might add more loops, it seems a bit sparse, especially on the legs/arms. Plus I think I would make the arms and legs longer.



Happy crocheting!



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Thursday 3 August 2017

Diagonal Box Stitch C2C Blanket

I made this blanket using the Diagonal Box stitch, sometimes known as the Corner 2 Corner stitch (C2C)

It is really easy to do and you can make square or rectangle blankets and also, if you stop with one long edge and don't decrease (thus making a triangle) you can use it as a shawl/scarf.

If you would like to have a go I have made a tutorial for the stitch - not the whole blanket as all you need to know is how to start and finish then you can make your own blanket as big or as small as you wish.


I started mine in Cygnet Kiddies Couture, Blueberry stripe. It looks lovely. However it seemed to be getting quite expensive so to help keep down the cost I used a plain white in the middle, it gives it a nice two sided effect I think.



It grew really quickly and is snuggly and warm.

I added a border after this picture was taken, you can see how it looks with the border on the video.


Happy crocheting!



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