Thursday 25 July 2013

A little sun

A little sun.
And a cloud or two.



Sometimes a rainbow.
(ok, so I haven't actually seen a rainbow yet, but you get the idea...) 

Just about sums up the beautiful weather we're having here at the mo.



And so, I'm inspired to make these little weather hangings. 
Simple and quick. 
(Make each from two identical pieces, stuff lightly and single crochet together)

I've displayed mine in wooden embroidery hoops on the wall, but they would be lovely as a mobile, or brooch, or keyring- I'm sure you could think of lots of other things too.



Weather Hangings

You'll need:

Yarn and hook to match (I used my trusty Rico Creative Cotton and a 4mm hook)

Polyester toy filling

Stitch marker

An embroidery hoop (the small one measures 23 cm, the larger 26 cms in diameter)

Stitches and Abbreviations:

I use US terms, so single crochet= same as UK double crochet here.

Chain (ch)

Single crochet (sc)

Double Crochet (dc)

Treble Crochet (tr)

Stitches (sts)

Single Crochet 2 Together (sc2tog)

Slip Stitch (sl st)

 

To single crochet 2 together:

Insert hook into next stitch.

Yarn over, pull up a loop. (2 loops on hook)

Insert hook into next stitch.

Yarn over, pull up a loop (3 loops on hook)

Yarn over and pull through all 3 loops.


Cloud



Make 2 pieces for each cloud
At the end of each row, turn and ch1

Beginning at the bottom left corner of your cloud
1. Ch 3
2. Sc 3
3. Sc 2, 2sc in next sc (4 sts)
4. 2sc in first sc, sc 3 (5)
5. Sc 4, 2sc in next sc (6)
6. Sc 6
7. Sc4, ch 2 (6)
8. Sc 6
9. Sc 5, 2sc in next sc (7)
10. Sc 7
11. Sc 7
12. Sc2tog, sc 5 (6)
13. Sc 4, ch 2 (6)
14. Sc 6
15. Sc 4, sc2tog (5)
16. Sc 5
17. Sc 3, sc2tog (4)
18. Sc2tog, sc 2 (3)

Fasten off.
Single crochet the two pieces together and stuff lightly before completing.


Sun



Make 2
Work in the round. 
Use your stitch marker to keep track of the first stitch of each round.

1. 6sc in magic ring or Ch 2, make 6sc in 2nd chain from hook.
2. 2scs in each sc around (12 sts)
3. (Sc 1, 2scs in next sc) repeat (18)
4. (Sc 2, 2scs in next sc) repeat (24)
5. (Sc 3, 2scs in next sc) repeat x 4, sc remaining sts in round (28)

Put the two pieces together so that the stitches go in the same direction.
Single crochet around the edge (28)

To make the rays:
Sl st into the first sc, *skip 1 sc (dc 2, tr 1, dc 2) in next sc, skip 1 sc, sl st in next sc* repeat from ** around.

Rainbow



It took me ages of faffing around until I worked out this simple solution for making a rainbow.

Work in the round. Use your stitch marker.

1. 5 sc in magic ring or ch 2, Sc 5 in 2nd chain from hook. [Violet]
2. (2sc in each sc) repeat (10)
3. (Sc 1, 2scs in next sc) (15) [Indigo]
4. (Sc 2, 2scs in next sc) (20) [Blue]
5. (Sc 3, 2scs in next sc) (25) [Green]
6. (Sc 4, 2scs in next sc) (30) [Yellow]
7. (Sc 5, 2scs in next sc) (35) [Orange]

Fold the circle in half to create your rainbow shape. 
Single crochet around the arc in Red and stuff lightly to complete your rainbow.

Not-so-bumpy Cloud


This was actually my first attempt at a crochet cloud. 
You can see it's a bit less-bumpy than the others.

Here's the pattern:

1. Ch 3
2. Sc 3
3. Sc 2, 2scs in next sc (4)
4. 2scs in first sc, sc 3 (5)
5. Sc 4, 2scs in next sc (6)
6. Sc 6
7. Sc 5
8. 2scs in first sc, sc 4 (6)
9. Sc 5, 2scs in next sc (7)
10. Sc 7
11. Sc 7
12. Sc2tog, sc 5 (6)
13. Sc 5
14. 2scs in first sc, sc 4 (6)
15. Sc 6
16. Sc2tog, sc 4 (5)
17. Sc 4
18. Sc2tog, sc 2 (3)

Now you just need to decide how many of each to make and where you're going to put them all!

Enjoy making.

Sarah x


Saturday 6 July 2013

The one where she makes a little doll. And then a big doll. And gets a dog.

As many of you know, I love a little amigurumi. (Japanese meaning 'knitted toy') Probably because they are so cute and fairly quick to make (and I am such a lazy crocheter at heart)

So I thought about a little doll.


With stitched hair (I didn't fancy making a wig this time)


Complete with her own crocheted clothes and accessories.



And then I wanted to make a bigger doll. I used exactly the same pattern, but held two strands of yarn together and a slightly bigger hook.


Pink hair was the order of the day. And she has clothes too.





I hope you like them.


If you fancy having a go- the pattern is available in my Etsy shop (see the link just over there in my sidebar) and contains all the instructions you need to make both the dolls and all the accessories.

Oh, and here's the reasons I've been absent these past few weeks: 
Two words:

Holiday  (Fabulous. Majorca. Hot. Pool. Sangria. 'Nuff said)


And ...
Puppy (11weeks old. Biting. Chewing. Chasing. Cuuuuuuute. 'Nuff said)


Yes, life is officially bonkers in Annaboo's House at the moment, thanks our lovely little pup.
She'is a Jug (3/4 Pug and 1/4 Jack Russell).
And we love her.


Have a wonderful week, everyone. Now things are a little quieter (ha!) I look forward to having a proper catchup with your wonderful blogs. I've missed you guys!

Sarah x