FO: Just a pair of yellow mittens

So, I did it. I made a pair of yellow mittens to go with the yellow beanie that I haverecently knitted. To be honest, I’m surprised that I actually went ahead with making a pair of yellow mittens despite my dissatisfaction with my yellow beanie. Perhaps it’s partially due to the fact that the remainder of the yellow yarn and a few crochet hooks are the only craft-related items that I have with me in Albury at the moment. I miss my Elna.

I digress.

Behold, a pair of yellow mittens that are technically not a pair because there are slight differences between the mittens. Maybe you can spot them in the photos, maybe you can’t.

These mittens are based on the pattern found here. Mind you, my mittens are a modified version. I originally planned on knitting a pair of mittens with a cable pattern so that it matches the pattern of the beanie better. But I decided that crochet hooks are easier to transport and a much quicker way to churn out a pair of mittens. Regardless, I think the fact that mittens are made from the same yellow yarn makes them look like they belong to the beanie. So, the mittens and the beanie are a set in my opinion and here’s a family photo just to prove it. 

DIY INSPIRATION: House of Holland's Granny Square Scarf

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I have never tried making a granny square because I was never able to decide on what I want to create with those granny squares. I thought of making a bag, a vest, a placemat... but oh boy, I never realised how good granny squares look as a scarf. I hate how runway shows and fashion designers make simple and possibly overlooked crochet items/knitwear look so chic.


I did a quick search for patterns to make granny square scarves on Ravelry and found this and this to be highly similar in terms of design. If you have never made a granny square and are not quite sure how to, there's a comprehensive tutorial with videos here.


Now I am itching to make a granny square scarf... What about you?


To view the complete collection by House of Holland, visit their website here.

FO: Mushroom Pickings

Yes, so I've made another crochet item, for another friend of mine as a birthday present, once again. Three crochet FOs in a month! I don't think I'm going to crochet a while... and I think these birthdays are going to stop coming for a while... phew!

What do you guys think of this bag? I gave it to my friend at her birthday party today and I think she likes it! :D I was thinking of using a bright yellow for the bag initially, but then I thought my friend would prefer this colour. The pattern is from here. But if you compare my bag to the original version, it's slightly different because I used 8ply yarn instead of the prescribed 10ply. I also worked in rounds and didn't turn my work, except when I was almost finishing at the top. My handles are definitely different too because by the time I got to the handles, I was like, "pattern? schmattern!" and worked it out myself. 


Nevertheless, I really like how the bag turned out! It's really surprising to see that it turned out to be sooooo mori-esque! Mori is a japanese style of dressing that I am actually rather into. But I haven't really dressed in that manner... yet... Anyway, I named the bag "Mushroom Pickings" because I imagined that is a bag someone might carry when s/he goes into the forest to pick mushrooms. Heh.


Well, my rambling will stop here. Sorry that I have only have one pathetic picture of the bag to show you guys. It isn't even the actual end product because I haven't weaved the ends in yet when I took this picture. I do have a couple of other WIP pictures, but I decided that they were too awful... >_<

FO: The Pur-bo Bag and The Be-red

For the past 2 weeks, I have been working my crochet hook like MAD because 2 of my friends' birthday are coming up this week and I planned on making something for them as presents. Actually, one of them is celebrating her birthday tonight (Friday) and the other one is having a BBQ lunch tomorrow. I'm only going for the one tomorrow. 


Ok, you're probably not interested in that much details. Enough of all that jabber. Now, photos! 


First up, the purple hobo bag, aka The Pur-bo bag:

I made a few changes to the original pattern by Stephanie Gage because I was running out of the purple yarn and there was no way that I could get a ball of this yarn from the same colour lot, since I bought the yarn ages ago. So I made a few changes to the pattern in order to accommodate my yarn shortage: 

Close-up

• 18 rows of the dc instead of the 20 in the pattern 
• 4 rows of sc at the top of the bag instead of the 5 in the pattern 
• 1 strap with the width of 7 sc instead of the 2 straps made using 4 sc each as stated in the pattern 

I thought it would look ugly with all the changes I have made. But it did not! I even feel like making one for myself now! But I shall not and must not, lest I end up with too many knitted/crochet hobo bags.

WIP

Next up, the red beret aka The Be-red:

This is the first time that I made a crochet hat. All my previous hats were knitted. When I completed this pattern by creativeyarn, I thought, "what!? that's it!?" I was quite disappointed as the opening was really too big and the beret did not have the slouch that I expected from the photos. Am I missing something about crochet hats here? Nevertheless, I continued with 1 more round to make the opening smaller:

• Round 19: sc 1, sc2tog, rep to end

Unfortunately, that did not help and I ended up with something that is slightly tight. It's either too loose or too tight... I decided to go with the latter. I guess it's cuter to see a little hat perching on a head? I might be wrong... >_<


So, I'm really not quite sure what I feel about this crochet beret. I have a feeling that it might not fit my friend's head because the crochet ends are quite tight. Maybe it's better to knit hats to give them the ability to stretch rather than to crochet...


But that said, I might still make one for myself...Might...

WIP

Christmas presents 2010

Before people start forgetting about the existence of my blog, I thought I should post something. These photos have been lying on my desktop for the longest time. It's time I show it to all of you.


Christmas presents that I made in 2010:

Possibly gothic ring made with Swarovski crystals

Ear studs made by pasting 2 different buttons together

Keyring with a little crochet heart

I made the crochet heart by following the pattern over here. But my heart looks really different from the original version. The yarn and hook combination that I used probably was not very compatible with the pattern.

The idea for the ring and the ear studs came when I was simply fiddling with the supplies that I have.

THINGS TO KNIT/CROCHET

With this list it seems like 24 hours a day are just not enough. But I need to put these off for a while because I need to start knitting some other stuff for my friends first!!!

One very compelling reason to make a crochet vest

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The way Janis Joplin rocks a crochet vest makes me want to have one too! And when you can crochet, why not try making one instead of buying one?


But I just need to source for a nice (and free) crochet vest pattern. These are what I have found so far:

Top left: White Mesh Vest (via)

Top right: Rosario Vest (via)

Bottom left: Lylara Crochet Vest (via)

Bottom right: Flower Square Vest (via)

I feel a lot more inclined to make the White Mest Vest because... well, it's a vintage pattern! The Flower Square Vest is a groovy vintage too. But I definitely wouldn't be making it in those funky colours. I want something just like Janis Joplin's. Something between beige and sandy brown...


I must make one crochet vest during my summer break this year. Crochet is SO HOT in fashion right now. Check out the some of the 16 Chic Crochet Clothes and Accessories on Refinery29:

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This makes me salivate as I look at my balls of yarn

Skymagenta from Malaysia has a serious case of MAD talent. Look at all this creations! Other than the visible crochet stitches, the form and colour of the objects are close to the real stuff. I want to nom on them right now...

Crochet Breakfast

Crochet Dim Sum

Crochet Sushi Platter

Crochet Pizza

Crochet Prawn Noodles

Crochet Taco and Chips

But she doesn't only specialise in food! I really wonder how much time she spends on making each set.

Crochet Hair Dryer and Tongs

Crochet Sewing Machine

She has tons of other creations available in her Etsy store. But if you just want to ogle at the pictures, you can check out her Flickr photostream, or follow her on her blog to get future updates!

All images are from Skymagenta's Flickr photostream.

Crochet Therapy

I've been sick for the past few days with a bout of tonsillitis. It's really bad infection that gives me painful sore throats and bloody nasal discharge. To make matters worse, I developed an allergic reaction to the antibiotic that I was given initially and ended up with peeling, bleeding lips and red itchy patches on my face. 'Nuff said.

Well, staying at home to recuperate can get really boring, so I finally got down to teach myself how to crochet after many failed attempts previously. Learning and practise come hand-in-hand, therefore I hooked on my remaining amount of yarn from making Vickie Howell's Lana & Clark Ascot (for a friend's birthday) to make this really tiny bag.

I found the pattern here. As there weren't any measurements of the finished project stated in the pattern, I was quite surprised to find that it turned out this tiny! I thought "itty bitty" was just a description of the bag being one that allows you to put your "itties bitties", but I didn't know that it was THIS TINY. And it even felt like a little bun to me as I held it in my hand to take this picture.

OH WELL. But I guess the size of the bag made it look cute. (^_^)

I'm giving this Itty Bitty bag to a friend of mine. (^_^)

Other than this, I've also been trying my hook on different yarns for different projects but I always got dissatisfied and then ripped it all out again. This crochet therapy really made me feel better. Perhaps all the sc, dc, hdc and then the final ripping was a way to vent frustrations while in a comfortable, resting position.