A Birthday Boo

My little brother's girlfriend celebrated her birthday over the weekend. Being on a budget, I had to think of something I could make in the short amount of time that I had.

I know she loves Mario Bros video games and has told me she thinks Boo is the cutest thing under the sun.

I came across this pattern from WolfDreamer OffTheHook when I was looking for a pattern for a Link hat for my brother. This was the first thing that came to mind when I realized I needed a gift.
The patter is for King Boo, and I ended up tweaking it a little. I opted to skip the crown and the wagging tongue. I stitched the white teeth to the red mouth and then to the crocheted Boo. The eyes and eyebrow are embroidered with black yarn.

The pattern was clear and easy to follow and there is a long list of really cute toys - a lot of Pokemon and Mario Bros characters. This is a great resource for crocheters with little ones!

Amigurumi Resources

So did I get you anxious to try some amigurumi? The patterns are simple and take only a few hours for experienced crocheters. For beginners wanting to try dolls and stuff animals, these are great starter projects.

If you want to try out a pattern or two, but don't necessarily want to invest in pattern books, there are lots of great free resources online. Here are just a few or the ones I really like:

Lion Brand Yarns: While it requires a free registration, you will have access to loads of patterns. There are lots of adorable amigurumi patterns, along with afghans, clothing, accessories and home decor items.

RoxyCrafts.com: This is Tamie Snow's home on the web. You can find both crochet and knit patterns, her blog, and patterns for sale.

Free Amigurumi Crochet Patterns: This is a great resource blog for patterns scattered all around the web. There are more than just adorable animals, there are also patterns for food, dolls and other toys.

Dish Cloths

Dish cloths are the amazing little towels that everyone needs but few people actually ever think about. What makes them fabulous for crocheters is they are the perfect medium for trying new stitches and patterns. The dish cloth is essentially a swatch of material - for crochet and knit, think about a 10"x10" square.

What makes them practical is that they don't need to be out of a fancy, high-end yarn. A worsted weight or 100% cotton yarn will work the best. Lily Original Sugar 'n Cream is what I used for the cloths show above, though I've heard a worsted weight such as Red Heart works great as well for scrubbing.

Every one needs dish cloths. They may not be practical to mass produce to sell at a show, but they can be personalized to fit a friend's kitchen decor and given as part of gift basket or house warming gift.

Happy Crafting All!

Scarves, Scarves, Scarves

Maybe the middle of September is the wrong time to start thinking about this, but I love scarves! I love to crochet them and give them as gifts. They are so simple and quick to make, and now is really the perfect time to start thinking about them - and making them!

Holiday craft shows are right around the corner, and a what better item to offer is scarves that you've crocheted or knit by hand. Think of all the possible variations - school colors, fashion colors, so many different yarns offering different weights and textures. Not to mention, they whip up in no time!

Patterns for scarves are in abundance, but I couldn't help but write my own. Hopefully it will get you motivated to make some of your own! This is a one skein project, using Homespun yarn. I love Homespun yarn for scarves because it is so soft and warm, and it stays soft even after several washings. Watch for sales at your favorite craft stores and you should be able to find it fairly inexpensive.

Materials:
One skein Lion Brand Homespun yarn (6oz)
Size K (2.5 mm) crochet hook

Abbreviations:
ch= chain
dc= double crochet

Ch 21

Row 1: Dc in fourth ch from hook and in each ch across. .
Row 2: Ch 3*, turn. Skip first stitch, dc in next stitch and in each dc across.
Repeat Row 2 until you run out of yarn. Fasten off, weave in ends.

Fringe is optional.

*= ch 3 is the first dc in each row

Happy Crafting All!

Free Crochet Patterns

I'm always looking for new and fun patterns to work from. And free patterns are the best! Recently, I came across a great resource for crocheters in search of fun, functional patterns. Free-Crochet.com has a diverse collection of patterns for crocheters of all skill levels. Patterns are searchable and downloaded in PDF format, which makes them easy to keep track of and print. I love browsing their selection and downloading patterns for future use.

Check out their site: http://www.free-crochet.com/

Happy Crafting All!

Is It Time To Learn...

...To crochet? I love crocheting because I can create some really great gifts for the people who mean the most to me in my life. We have one friend of the family that still raves about the afghan I crocheted him for Christmas last year. Whatever you choose to make, the recipient will be touched that you made something by hand. The first step in making something, though, is knowing how to crochet.

So to help you get started, I've found some great teaching links. These sites offer detailed instructions on how to crochet, for the beginner!

http://learntocrochet.lionbrand.com/

http://crochet.about.com/od/learnbasics/a/beginners.htm

http://www.learntoknit.com/instructions_cr.php3

http://crochet-mania.blogspot.com/
This site offers instructions and patterns!

Happy Crafting All!

Cute and Hip-po!

Here is another adorable little creation straight from the pages of 'Tiny Yarn Animals' by Tamie Snow. This little hippo was whipped up in just a few hours and would make a great gift for someone who collects either hippos or amigurumi.

The book, 'Tiny Yarn Animals,' has a total of 20 amigurumi patterns including this little guy, the lamp I showed you last week and other adorable little critters such as a koala, lemur, hedgehog, bear, octopus and fish. The patterns would be great for any experienced crocheter. (Those who are new to crochet may find the lack of instructional pictures a little frustrating.) Nicholas Noyes did a fantastic job photographing the finished projects in ways that give each little critter it's own personality.

Happy Crafting All!

Counting Sheep

I love creating little stuffed toys. The pattern for this adorable little guy came from 'Tiny Yarn Animals' by Tamie Snow. I've finished a couple of the patterns in the book and am very pleased with the results. I would highly recommend the book to experienced crocheters. The pictures of the finished animals are fun and inspiring.

This little lamb took me about four hours to complete, start to finish, and is made of inexpensive worsted weight yarn. Cute and durable - a great combination!

Happy Crafting All!

Fiber Resource

Recently, I have been showing off my crochet handy work with patterns that I found on LionBrand.com. For today's crochet post, I thought I would share a link to the Lion Brand site.


I love the Lion Brand site, which currently has over 2,300 knitting, crochet and yarn craft patterns. The do control how the patterns are downloaded however, but requiring you sign up for a FREE account. This is actually not a bad thing because you will also be able to choose mailing list options. The mailings I get include few patterns and information on new yarns, exclusive sales and other fun things that the company offers.

The site is a fantastic resource for knitters and crochets alike, from all skill levels and definitely worth looking at! Why not create your own project with one of their patterns and send me a picture of your creation so it can be shared with the cyber world!

Happy Crafting All!