The first thing I picked up to keep my hands busy was my own Blooming Sun Hat (my design,  in Crochet Today May/June 2010) worked in Knit One Crochet Too’s Ty Dy Cotton. I have been reading about the yarn on Ravelry,  and crocheters like it because it has long color repeats (important for the tall and yarn-eating crochet stitch). I finally found some of it close-to-locally when Paul took me on a Hill Country Yarn Crawl of my very own for my birthday last month, so I bought a ball to swatch with. The yardage is generous –another plus for crocheters!– so I figured I would be able to make the hat with enough to spare for swatching. Overall, I like how the coloring worked out, but I actually think that a stiffer cotton (such as the Red Heart Eco-Cotton I used for the magazine) was well suited for this hat, as it made the whole thing a bit more stiff. A cotton linen blend would be nice as well–it all depends what you are going for. I do love that the lighter weight of this yarn and I already wore the hat outside  to do some gardening this morning.

I’m also thisclose to finishing another pair of Easy Does It Crocheted Socks from the aptly named book, Crocheted Socks: 16 Fun-To-Stitch Patterns. I started these with my sock class that I taught at  Yarnivore using Stroll sock yarn from Knit Picks (leftover from a forthcoming design). Since I needed a sock to demonstrate on I figured I would go ahead and make the pair, I just made them short anklets since I had used part of the skein for the other project and knew I wouldn’t have enough to make a full cuff. I am proud to say that I guessed just right and ended up with just a few yards left of yarn– it feels so good to USE it UP sometimes, doesn’t it? I have so much stash leftover from book and mag projects and I really hate to let it languish, but I do start to get sick of a yarn if I already made the intended project, the scrap project, and still have more left! Heh! Anyway, the socks fit perfectly, I just need to sew up the toe. Unfortunately, in my opinion these socks are an example of what short color repeats look like in crochet—ugly. While I love the colors of this yarn, I don’t really like the way it pooled here, which happened because the repeats are too short (for this stitch pattern, in crochet). If you end up with a yarn like this, try alternating it with a solid to space out the pools–that’s what I did for the forthcoming project and I like it much better. But, hey, free socks to wear around the house!

The last thing in the works right now is actually on my knitting needles– I got them out last night and cast on for my Rippley Sweet BonBon Baby Blanket, a free pattern on Ravelry,  from Austin’s great yarn shop, Hill Country Weavers. One of my favorite students came in with the yarn and pattern for a couple of these and I helped her with them, and then when I was in their store this weekend I could no longer resist starting my own.  I had about 3 skeins of Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton left over from Tricia Royal’s Mod Cross Pillow in Crochet Adorned and they all matched well with one of multicolored Filatura Di Crosa Bon Bon skeins (the pom-pom yarn) in the store, so I went ahead and got it, along with the red cotton. I’m going to make my blanket stripey so I can work with what I have. This is another favorite way for me to use stash/leftover yarns–buy just a little of something new to make them fun again. And- knit with them instead of crocheting with them (or vice versa). The stitch pattern on this project  is relatively simple but I find that it helps to place a marker between each repeat so that if you get hung up somewhere it’s easy to follow the repeat and figure out which section is the problem. It’s very addictive to work this, too- in fact I’m trying to avoid it right now so I can actually get some things done today.

That’s what’s new over here– what’s on your hooks and needles?

I’ll be working at Yarnivore all this week, so all will be quiet on the blog front!

If you’re seeking crochet inspiration, might I remind you that Easter is coming up and I have a free crochet pattern for easter eggs, chicks and bunnies? A reader recently sent me a pic of one of the eggs she made– she lined the bottom with fabric and turned it into a pin cushion– what a great idea!

Craft  zine also recently republished my wildly popular Crocheted Reversible Swiffer Sock pattern in an easy-to-print format.

And if you still haven’t gotten your hands on Crochet Adorned (which was nominated for a Flamie!), Blue Bird Luxe is giving away a free copy on her blog!

Have a great week!

The drawing above is by Paul Heaston–it’s my yarn swift.

It’s fun to play with the colors for this pattern, since I have quite a few different cottons in my stash. Although, as far as stashbusting goes, let’s just say you’d have to crochet a heck of a lot of these before you bust much stash. But- since you can toss these in the wash (unline a sponge), it’s good to have a few around anyway.

After making so many of these I have a few suggestions/additions to my pattern.

*For Lion Cotton (Or Sugar’n'Cream) switch to a size H hook and ch 17 or 19 stitches to start (reducing the dc in each row to 6 or 8), to get a smaller or slightly smaller tawashi, respectively. I also only crocheted 21 rows instead of 24.
*Add a ch-15 hanging loop at the beginning of one row (before you make the first sc)- this will help you hang it up to dry if you use it often.
*Leave the first end long (to sew up one end of the tawashi) and the last end very long (to sew up the side and other end of the tawashi)– you can crochet over all of the other ends as you go to save some time. You don’t need to sew the top gathering point to the bottom one, either– you can, but it will lie flat without that step and it gives you the option of using it as shown above, which might be good for a bath scrubber.

These are addictive to make because there are quick. And of course there are lots other cute and fun tawashi patterns to knit or crochet out there, so have fun with it! I figure I’ll stack a few together with some nice dish soap and have a start on holiday gifts. If you end up making a tawashi or two, I’d love to see a photo–whether on Ravelry, Craftstylish, or via a link in the comments! Get hooking.

Since  ideas are still running around in my head,  I will still be posting over there occasionally, but I wanted to let you know what was happening. and why there won’t be as many updates from me and the other bloggers. The plethora of great how-tos remains at the site, though, so I hope you’ll still check in.

While we’re on the subject, let’s take a tour of some of my projects from May. The theme was celebrations/DIY Weddings.

Above is my paper flower bouquet- I was really impressed with how easy these flowers were to make and how pretty they were, considering they were made with crepe paper. When I was styling the “finished” photo I spotted this ball of yarn and knew it was destined to be the vase. I really love this project.

And here’s a sweet little crochet/beading combination: a bridal necklace. Of course, you do not have to be a bride to make or wear this necklace– try it in a bright color for every day appeal!

My final project forMay was this gnome place card holder. Here I was just having fun with my cupcake toppers and styrofoam balls because there are only so many DIY Bride projects that I can think of in one month. But worry not- two more bride/wedding posts are on their way from me in June. I just raided the silk flower section of the craft store this weekend to prepare myself for the challenge.

If you’d like to see more of my tutorials and posts, check ‘em out right here.

My two favorite projects have to be the crocheted crafts. First there was a simple striped tawashi:

I see more of these in my future. They’re quick, fun, and a great way to use up scraps.  I’m going to add a hanging loop to any further renditions  (just chain 10 at the end and sew the loop in place) so that I’ll have an easier time making sure they dry. I like the idea of filling my drawers with these– I use them in conjunctions with rags to almost eliminate paper towels. I admit, I still use paper towels for occasional things (mainly blotting bacon grease and pizza) but remember: any step you take, no matter how small, helps.

I also whipped up this swiffer sock, which was born out of my need to not pay for swiffer covers. And my need to actual sweep the house once in a while. It works remarkably well and holds up to the washer and dryer. This is the project for your stash acrylics, friends! I happen to think both this and the tawashi would make great little gifts.

In addition, I sewed some simple produce bags,  a recycled baby bib (from jeans and corduroy pants) and a clothespin bag made from old jeans (this would also work well to store the plastic grocery bags that do make their way into your home). Check them out, and remember, do whatever you can to celebrate Earth Month all year! There are tons of awesome projects by everyone on the site.

These came out so  cute, and were fun to make. And you can really go to town striping your eggs with scrap yarns.  I didn’t write color changes into the pattern, but just change colors at the last yarn over of the last stitch of the round before you want to start the new color. You can also decorate these eggs with embroidery, or by adding felt shapes, etc, etc.  Each one took me about an hour to make, and I used an extended single crochet in order to get a lighter, stretchier fabric. You can even use these as egg cozies for your easter brunch (stop crocheting after Round 12, and be sure to use the recommended yarn weight/hook combo).

Believe it or not, I also made that basket that the eggs are hiding in. I took a basket weaving class with a local weaver this weekend, and I really enjoyed it.  At first, the weaving was all fun and games, but then we had to tuck each end of the reed into the basket– that part was a pain. While I don’t forsee pursuing the craft on my own (mainly because I don’t want to store yet another set of supplies!), I hope to take another class from her sometime soon. I felt like putting on a skirt, filling the basket with apples, and skipping around town when I finished it. Fortunately it was about 30 degrees outside so I didn’t indulge–but I will bust it out come farmer’s market season….

…if it’s not busy holding my yarn, that is!

Now, onto the egg/chick/bunny pattern!

Easter Eggs
Designed by Linda Permann, http://www.lindamade.com

Materials:
Any weight yarn with hook to match (I used fingering weight with a size 3,25 mm hook to get a close to life-size egg, you could also try worsted weight with a 3.75 or 4 mm hook for a slightly larger egg)
Yarn needle
Polyfil

Special Stitches:
Extended Single Crochet (esc): Insert hook in next stitch, yarn over and draw up a loop (there are now 2 loops on your hook). Yarn over and draw through the first loop, yarn over again and draw through the remaining loop.

Extended Single Crochet Decrease (dec): (Insert hook in next stitch, yarn over and draw up a loop) twice, draw last loop made through 2nd loop on hook, yarn over and draw through the remaining loop on your hook.

Note: This pattern uses standard crochet abbreviations.

Egg Shape (functions as an egg, or a chick or bunny body)
Make an adjustable ring.
Round 1: Ch 2, 7 esc in ring, join with a sl  st to first esc–7 esc.
Round 2: Ch 2, *esc in next st, 2 esc in next st; rep from * around, join with a sl st to first esc–10 esc.
Round 3: Repeat Round 2–15 esc.
Round 4: Ch 2, *esc in next 2 sts, 2 esc in next st; rep from * around, join with a sl st to first esc–20 esc.
Round 5: Repeat round 4–26 esc.
Rounds 6-12: Ch 2, esc in each st around, join with a sl st in first esc–26 esc.
Round 12: Ch 2, *esc in next 3 sts, dec over next 2 sts; rep from * around, join with a sl st in first esc– 21 esc.
Round 13: Ch 2, * esc in next 2 sts, dec over next 2 sts; rep from * around, join with a sl st in first sesc–16 esc.
Note: Stuff the egg shape with polyfil before continuing to the next rounds!!
Round 14: Ch 2, *esc in next st, dec over next 2 sts; rep * around, join with a sl st in first esc–12 esc.
Round 15: Ch 2, *dec over next 2 sts, leaving last loop of decrease on hook as you go (you may want to move them to a safety pin to hold them if it becomes difficult to go around). Cut a long end and draw it through the loops on your hook, starting at the loop farthest away from the hook (essentially you are making a drawstring for the last round of loops).
Weave in the ends, embroider the face (if desired).

Bunny Ears (make 2):
Note: I worked my ears directly into the head by attaching the yarn where I wanted each ear to start, chaining 2, and working the rows as described. You can also work them separately and sew them on (which is how I have written the directions).

Ch 6.
Row 1: Esc in 3rd ch from hook and each ch across, turn– 4 esc.
Row 2: Ch 2, esc in each chain across, turn– 4 esc.
Row 3 -4: Repeat row 2.
Row 5: Ch 2, decrease over next 2 sts, esc in remaining 2 sts, turn– 3 esc.
Row 6: Repeat row 2–3 esc.
Row 7: Repeat Row 5– 2 esc.
Row 8: Repeat Row 5– 1 esc.
Fasten off and weave in ends. Evenly sc around the entire outside edge of each ear. Attach ears to top of egg.

Enjoy! Please let me know if you find any errors as I haven’t had this pattern tested– and please share a pic with me if you use the pattern (you can upload one to ravelry and link to the project here)! You are free to make as many things as you like with this pattern, but if you’d like to sell the outcome, please credit me as the designer and link to this page. Thanks!