Sneak Peek...

It's almost the end of June, which means the Crochet Platypus Challenge is coming to a close...

We've had some very creative entries so far!

....

Soon the July Knitting Challenge will be announced.

and GUESS WHAT?

It's not a toy!

That's all I'm saying for now...

Distraction

I've been working on that Male Centaur... but I need to take a break for a bit.

Of all things, it it the chest which is driving me bonkers!

I think that I'm actually trying to do too much with it. Trying to include broad shoulders and a six-pack along with guns to die for... it's all a bit of overkill really, and I need to step back, re-assess and then start afresh...

So I'm distracting myself with a Crochet Today magazine which Cristina left behind after our Crochet Meet yesterday. I had been checking out these slippers during the Meet, and now that the magazine has been left behind... I figure I've got time to make them before returning it at the next get-together in a fortnight!

I love the idea of the double thickness sole and I'm always a bit of a softie for any project which features the Granny Square. That being said, I would like to make it clear that I WILL NOT be making the matching scarf, bag and doggie coat on the front of the magazine!

As you can see, the slippers are fairly simple.

Not sure if they might be a bit too boxy to stay on the feet properly, but I'll test them out and let you know...

Meanwhile, there is a Little Girl sitting here with me waiting patiently for her breakfast.

So it's time to finish up the coffee... put the magazine away... and get back to being a Mum.

I am a child...

 

Had a Crochet Meet again at  my place today.

I love our fortnightly gatherings. 

They're the perfect excuse to chat and craft all day long...

I did a little bit of work on my Male Centaur.

But mostly I just played around.

Yes.

I am a child!

Happy Flower Decoration

I made this Cheery Flower to adorn Little Charlotte's bedroom door...

The pattern is from Lucy over at Attic24.

Actually, it's more of a photo tutorial than a pattern, so if you're still fairly new to crochet you will love it. Lucy takes you through the project step-by-step with loads of photos, so you just can't go wrong. Here's the link so that you can go and take and peek for yourself.

After you've made the flower, you need to paint the back of it with glue to stiffen it.

Which means that it ends up looking pretty revolting from behind - but it will sit beautifully when you hang it!

Mostly I followed the pattern, with a little improvising at the end!

And now (of course) Young Katie would like a flower for her bedroom door.

Look, she's even drawn me a sketch... where on earth would she have got the idea to do that?

So I'm sort of going to follow her plan... but add a surprise for the centre...

Sally.

Meet Sally the Sassy Centauride

(apparently that's the correct term for a female centaur - a centauride)

Do you recognize her?

I showed you a sketch of her here on my blog last week...

She has come together so quickly! 

The pattern has already been written, and is with my team of wonderful testers as we speak. Daphne, Kyliie, Juanita, Vanessa and Harmony are hooking away... 

and I can't wait to see how their creatures turn out.

 It really is the most fun part of the whole pattern publishing process - to see how everyone's projects turn out - and with these little creatures, 

it's like meeting family when you finally get to see them!

I'm totally in love with this girl.

She's a bold and spirited, fiery red head!

I tried to take some outdoor photos, but the wind has been SO WILD around here lately...

Urban Jungle

Couldn't quite decide on how to embellish this one - so I'm using it as a blank canvas for whatever brooch I would like to showcase on the day...

See?

So this one is another Free Pattern available online.

It's called Urban Jungle and is designed by Vicki Howell.

As you can see, it's a Crocheted Slouchy Beanie!

Click here for the link to pattern.

Now for my modifications:

• I worked an invisible join for the rounds… which looks MUCH better than the join the pattern asks you to do! Sl st into the top of the 1st puff stitch to finish the round, then sl st into the next ch-1 sp… work puff st in this space to begin the new round 
• I used a 4mm hook for band, then a 5mm hook for remainder of hat... don't really remember why... I think that it was to make the band stitches tighter, and less likely to stretch.

And my other thoughts:

•  All those puff sts really CHEW through the yarn!!! They make the hat very heavy too. Perhaps next time I would make smaller puff stitches, using only two or three wraps? 
• I know that I made the large size - because I have a large head - but really, the small one would have been fine!

 

Mythology Challenge

The current Design-Along challenge is to use Mythology as your inspiration...

Which seems like the perfect excuse to design a CENTAUR...

She'll be a little like the mermaid - but with the body of a horse!

Stay tuned.

And if you're feeling inspired yourself  - go and have a look at the challenge criteria here.

Asymmetrical Elegance

Finally finished my hairpin lace piece.

I’m calling it Asymmetrical Elegance…

I started with a length of hairpin lace loops, and it kind of evolved from there!

An old pendant has been recycled into a button to secure the scarf closed.

Freeform Scarf

Free and Easy...

Twisty and Twirly...

Softly Falling...

I love this scarf.

And here's a little peek at some of the stitch detail...

(you'll have to excuse the questionable lighting in these ones)

Deep End

So I've decided to jump in at the Deep End with this Origami Challenge.

(click here to refresh your memory about the sketch I'm working to -  it's the purple one in the centre)

Yarn has been chosen.

I have made a SWATCH!!!!

First swatch ever!

I kid you not... I never swatch, but for designing a garment from scratch to a specific sample size - you MUST swatch...

I've worked up my calculations, and pattern plan.... and I'm off - knitting up a storm...

Elegant Hat

I think that I've made more hats in the last few months, than in the rest of my life put together.

Between the Beanie Festival and the oodles of chemo caps (too many friends doing chemotherapy this year!) it has been hat, after hat, after hat!

After a while, you just get on a roll with them, and they become second nature.

I really love this latest one.

It's called Elegant Hat and is designed by Kim Guzman.

The pattern is available free online - click here.

The original pattern has a bow, which I've left out in favour of a rose.

Actually, the hat itself is simple and elegant. I quite like it without any embellishment at all. 

The band was a bit fiddly to work though. It is done in crab stitch (reverse sc) through the front loops for three rounds. It almost drove me insane for the first two rounds, but by round three I was getting into the swing of it!

And the band really provides some good firm support for the hat, too. Helps it keep its shape. Quite a clever design feature - to add visual interest and support.

As you can see... I couldn't leave well enough alone - and I just HAD to embellish the hat!

First there was the simple whip stitch edging.

Then a rose.

With a button.

And some leaves.

And we're done!

One Year Old?

How is it possible that my Brand New Little Baby is one year old already?

Can you believe that it's true?

ALREADY ONE???

Ridiculous. Just Ridiculous.

And yet she is.



Which means that I've been working on this dog for a long time too.

I blogged about him back in November last year... and was planning to finish him then - but I guess I got distracted (it happens so easily around here)

But finally he is done - my Scrappy Sausage Dog - just in time for Little Charlotte's Birthday.

Origami Challenge

Look!

A sketch...

I wonder how far past this point I will get???

Not feeling terribly confident on this one - but I'm jumping in with both feet anyway.

So - it is for the Designers Challenge group over on Ravelry. Usually the Challenges run for one month, but this one is a Super Challenge... and runs for June and July.

Now for the details:

Object: top - There has been huge discussions over what exactly constitutes a top - so if you were thinking about joining in the challenge, you should check out the specific details over at Ravelry. As it happens, open fronted 'tops' will not qualify... so the one on the left of my sketch will be a no-go.

Theme: origami - The top needs to be inspired in some way by origami. I love origami roses, so I've chosen to add flowers to embellish the top.

Technique: stripes - I'm thinking garter st stripes at the hips, and maybe at the neckline...

So that's the easy part done.

Here's where the CHALLENGE kicks in...

I've never designed a garment before!!!

Wish me luck.

Finished Cabochon

So I finished the cabochon I was working on... featuring the photo of Mum. 

The beads were probably a bit too heavy for the project - but they're exactly the look that I was after...

Because of their weight, they do tend to fall to the back of the piece. I had thought about mounting it onto a fabric covered block of wood for support, but when I tested it out, I didn't like the 'rectangleness' of it. I much prefer the softness of the beaded crochet edging...

So I've decided to leave well enough alone.

Since the plan is to hang the piece, I hope that whatever is behind it will provide the support.

If not, then I can always add an extra backing to it at a later date.

Here's how it looks from behind. You can see that I've just added a metal ring to the back, so that it can be hung (as you would a picture frame)

At first I had it pinned to the family notice board, but that didn't seem to be quite the right spot...

And for now the piece is attached to a basket at the top of my bookcase. It's the basket where I keep all of the yarn which has been reclaimed from Mum's jumpers - to keep it separate from the rest of my stash, so I can use it for SPECIAL projects, like the Nan bear.

Not convinced that this is where she will stay - but it is home for now!