Let it Snow....

Hello folks,

for once, I am not talking about the weather but Christmas traditions. I love this time of year, keeping and making new traditions as we move through the short December days towards Christmas. I don't like to start too early so wait until December, starting with the lighting of the advent candle on the 1st. I love my Christmas traditions and am always interested in other peoples' traditions too so I thought I'd start my first Christmas themed post with a tradition I started a few years ago and that is popping a little crocheted or tatted surprise in some of my Christmas cards.

Snowflake cards anyone? Big or small, glittery or pure white, beaded or plain, I don't know anyone who doesn't like these little surprises in their cards. In the past I've made tatted icicles and stars, this year I decided to make snowflakes, the one above is a pattern by Caitlin Sainio from the book 75 Lace Crochet Motifs which I reviewed earlier this year.

While the wind howled round the house and the rain hammered down over the last few days I sat with my hook and cotton making a variety of snowflakes, from small to large, for various recipients. The one on the right I embellished using a Pinflair Pearl Wand after I added the red crocheted loop to turn it into a tree decoration. The small snowflakes could be used to decorate plain gift tags or napkin rings for the Christmas dinner table however I tend to use them all for tree decorations. It helps to know which friends like large trees and which have smaller ones so I can tailor each decoration to it's intended recipient.

Once all the snowflakes were made and blocked, I stiffened them with a can of spray starch. They could also have been stiffened by painting with a weak glue solution but as I wasn't using glitter I used the starch instead. Once dry they were almost ready to go.

The snowflakes can have a crocheted loop like the one in the picture, narrow ribbon threaded through the top picots or even a loop made from a length of pearl bead ribbon, anything you wish to use really.

Although I don't make my own cards the motifs could be used for card making, turning them into a card and small gift in one by attaching the ribbon loop to the inside of the front of a card so it can be removed after Christmas and kept to use as a decoration the following year.

Whilst the pattern for the large snowflake is not mine, I made up the simple smaller snowflakes myself and you are welcome to use the pattern if you like this idea or there are lots of snowflake patterns about on the internet. I used size 10 crochet cotton in white and red and a 2mm hook.

Small Snowflake 

Working in the round and using UK terms:

1. Make 4 ch, join in a ring with a sl st.

2. 1 ch, 5dc in ring, sl st to 1st ch.

3. 5 ch, sl st in next dc of ring, repeat 5 times ending with a sl st at base of 1st ch.
 

4. Sl st to 3rd ch of 5 ch loop on previous round, *3 ch,  1 picot (3ch, sl st in 3rd ch from hook),

3ch, sl st to 3rd ch of next loop* repeat from * to*

ending with last sl st at the start of the 1st loop.

For small snowflake fasten off here, block and starch, for medium continue as below.

Medium Snowflake

Follow pattern for small snowflake then work 5th row.

5. Sl st in each ch to and including picot, *4 ch, 1 picot, 4ch, sl st to picot at point of loop on previous round* repeat from * to * ending with sl st at the start of the 1st loop as in row 4.


Weave in ends and block. Stiffen with starch or paint with a solution of 2 teaspoons PVA glue and 1 teaspoon water and leave to dry on waxed paper. If you want to add glitter use the glue method and add the glitter before the motif drys.


I'm sorry the photos aren't very good, unfortunately the light has been very poor over the last few days making it difficult to get good pictures. I hope you like this and it may give you inspiration for a new tradition of your own. The end of the first week of advent also means baking the first batch of mince pies and making spiced hot chocolate for me and gingerbread latte for N. This year I also made a plum and marzipan tart. What traditions do you keep? I'd love to know if you would like to share them with me.

Til next time.

Hx

Shoes, Shoes, Shoes

Can a girl ever have too many shoes? Even if she is only a few weeks old?

In my last post I mentioned shoes, specifically a pair of baby Mary Janes. When I heard my friend had a new grand-daughter I wanted to make a little something for her but didn't want to do yet another car seat blanket. I couldn't think of anything more different than shoes. If I'm honest I love the baby Mary Jane patterns I've seen, they are pretty, they are cute and oh so girly but I haven't had a little girl to make any for until now. The only other baby girl doesn't live in the UK and would have outgrown them before they reached her so I was really quite excited at finally getting a chance to make a pair.

Off upstairs to the bookcase I went and pulled out all my crochet books. I had three different patterns to try -  ballet shoes, lacy slippers and Mary Janes from the books Cute and Easy Crochet, Crocheted Gifts in a Weekend and Easy Crochet.

 I tried them all however in the end I decided to use the pattern I found in the January issue of Love Crochet magazine, it's the one with  Liz Ward's incredibly cute and colourful monkey on the front.

The Mary Jane pattern is by Nicki Trench, aren't these tiny shoes adorable?

 They are worked all in one piece too, hardly any sewing, need I say more?

I had originally planned to use Sirdar Snuggly 4 ply yarn in a very soft, pale lilac however the pattern in the magazine used 3 ply mercerised cotton in white which I just happened to have in three colours - white, lemon and red. Instead of pink and green embroidery floss for the leaves and flowers I planned to substitute lilac and purple for the pink. Not quite white and lilac are they?

Somewhere between the sole and upper of the first shoe I changed my mind, perhaps influenced by the summery weather we had been having and started again using lemon for the main colour of the shoe. Once both shoes had been completed in lemon it was time to crochet the contrasting trim around the edges. The white yarn I had planned to use didn't look quite right, I felt it was a little wishy-washy so I tried the red. Now I'll be honest, red and yellow on a baby shoe? I wasn't too sure about that at all. I edged the first shoe with trepidation, fully expecting to find it too harsh and rip it out again...but... it looked good. It was cheerful. It was summery. It worked!

Next up were the flowers to decorate the front of the Mary Jane, with the new colours I favoured daisies. I like daisies but...they didn't go, just didn't look right so it was back to the drawing board. I tried a few different colours of embroidery floss, they weren't right either. Having run out of options I had the red cotton left but I thought would that be too much red? Overpowering? As the local wool shop is in the next town popping over there wasn't a quick option so I tried the red, making a small flower for each shoe. It worked, it actually looked okay, so I carried on and made the leaves using green embroidery floss and stitched them on to the shoes.

The pattern in the magazine used velcro to fasten the straps on the shoes and two little buttons to decorate so I added some velcro then spent a happy hour going through the button box at my Mum's house, coming home with two tiny red buttons to try and two little white buttons. When I tried the buttons on the shoes though, it didn't look good, it was too much, too fussy, so I left them off.

Finally, they were ready to block and go to their little owner, but first I just had to admire them for a little longer.

The shoes I've made are a little smaller than the ones in the pattern as those are to fit a baby 6-9 months old and the baby I've made these shoes for will only be a couple of months old by summer. I lined a pretty gift bag with white tissue, nestled the bright, summery little shoes inside and delivered them to Grandma's house.


Have you made Mary Janes or other styles of baby shoes? What pattern and colours did you use? I'd love to know.

Hx

The Daffodil Pattern and Tutorial

It's finally here!

I'm sorry it's taken so long to write up my pattern but it's been very busy here over the last week. I was invited to the local Volunteer Framework Launch, then had a girly day out to attend, before I knew it the weekend was here, the sun was shining and the garden calling. So after all that I finally got a chance to sit down with my camera, a 4mm hook and some yellow acrylic dk yarn (Sirdar Hayfield Baby Bonus if you're asking).

The stitches I used were
UK -  chain (ch), slip stitch (sl st), double crochet (dc), half treble crochet (htr) and treble (tr)
US -  dc = single crochet,  htr = half double and tr = double

Leaving a long yarn end, start with 6 ch and join with a sl st to form a ring.

Catching the yarn end in at the back of the ring, work 12 dc in ring and join with sl st to 1st dc.

wrong side showing yarn carried through dc stitches

For the petals:

Ch 7, 1dc in 2nd chain from hook,

 
1dc in next 5 chains, 1 sl st into each of next 2 dc on ring. Repeat 5 times.

 

  The petals are a bit curly but will straighten out later on.

 

Work 1 dc in first 2 stitches of petal, 2 htr in next st, 2 tr in next st, 1htr in next st,

 3 dc in top of petal,

 

1 htr in next st, 2 tr in next st, 2htr in next st, 1 dc in each of last two st of petal ending with sl st at the base. Repeat 5 times.

 

Work 1 dc in each st to top of petal, ch3,

sl st in 3rd ch from hook (forms picot),

 1 dc in each st to base of petal. Repeat 5 times.

For the cup:

Sl st on right side  to centre ring or fasten off and re-join yarn.

Work 11 dc evenly around ring surface and join with a sl st. Mark the end of the 1st row, I've used a pretty stitch marker but a small safety pin or even contrasting yarn would do.

 

Then work:

 1 ch, 1 dc in each st to end, sl st to 1st dc.

1 ch, 1 dc in next 3 st, 2dc in next st, 1 dc in next 3 st, 2dc in next st, 1 dc in next 2st, 2dc in last st, sl st to 1st dc.

1 ch, 1 dc in each st to end, sl st to 1st dc.

*2dc in 1st st, sl st in next st* repeat to end.

Fasten off leaving a long end and using a yarn needle weave in down the inside of the daffodil cup.
 

Knot the yarn at the base ring (to stop the cup being distorted)  then make a loop by passing the needle up through the stitches on the base ring inside the cup, then back through the ring on the next stitch along, catching the yarn with your fingers to keep the loop long. Fasten off and weave in the end. Repeat with the other yarn end on the opposite side of the base ring (you won't need to make a knot this time).


Almost finished. Block and starch your daffodil, making sure the loops are standing up. Once blocked, cut the loops to give four stamens, then add a drop to each stamen from a Pinflair Pearl Wand if you have one or leave as they are. Your daffodil is ready to use.

This daffodil is a little larger than the one I made for the brooch, to make it smaller change the hook size and/or yarn. My original daff was made using a 3.5mm hook and the same acrylic yarn as I've used in the photos. Using a 4 ply cotton or even crochet thread would make lovely small daffs. I've used a single shade but different colours could be used for the petals and stamens to give a different look.

I hope you enjoy making it whether for yourself or for someone else. The pattern is completely free to use, however if you would like to you can make a donation to the Marie Curie Great Daffodil Appeal by clicking here. If you wish to copy or share this pattern or my photos please link back to me.

Enjoy!

H x