Friend Scarf: Crochet Pattern

It's winter again so that means it's time to make some friend scarves!

Materials:

     Caron 1 lb yarn or similar weight yarn (can make 2 scarves)

     I Hook or similar

     Yarn Needle

     Scissors

Measurement: Approximately 6 to 7 inches wide.

Pattern

Begin: Make a ch 29.

Row 1: Skip 4 chains from the hook, and make a DC into the next chain.

            

   [[ Skip 3 chains below and, all in the 4th chain, make DC2, ch2, DC2 (this is a shell).

      Skip 3 chains below and, all in the 4th chain, make DC1, ch1, DC1 (this is a v-stitch)  ]]

       ***Repeat instructions in brackets two more times.

         Make sure to end on a v-stitch

         (see pic below)

..Row 2: Make a ch 4, and then make a DC in the first opening.

            

   [[ Skip to the top of the shell and make DC2, ch2, DC2 (this is a shell).

      Skip to the middle opening of the v-stitch and make DC1, ch1, DC1 (this is a v-stitch)  ]]

       ***Repeat instructions in brackets two more times.

         Make sure to place the last v-stitch onto the very last opening.

         (see pic below)

...

Row 3 and all remaining rows:

    Repeat instructions for Row 2.

     Continue 'til scarf reaches desired length.

etc...

Finishing Row: Make a ch 3 and make a DC into the first ch-opening below.

     [[ Next,  Make 4 SC into the top of the shell,

          then make a v-stitch on top of the next v-stitch  ]]

 ***Repeat instructions in brackets two more times.

         Make sure to place the last v-stitch onto the very last ch-space.

   Tie off and use the yarn needle to weave in the ends.

         (see pic below)

That's all there is to it.

Make one for everyone on your friend list  =)

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DIY Easy Little Crochet Leaves

A friend of mine wanted to make a garland to decorate her banister this holiday season, so she asked me to help her make some crochet leaves for the garland. After searching through all the usual sites, I came across a few designs that looked promising, but none of them really matched what I had envisioned, so I decided to make the pattern from scratch.

I know that not all folks read crochet "code", so I'm going to present this tutorial with minimal coding. In other words, I will explain in good old-fashioned words. For those of you who do enjoy those crazy industry-standard crochet patterns, you can scroll down to the bottom to find the quickie pattern.

Stitches to know: You will need to already be familiar with the following stitches...

a. Chain

b. Slip stitch

c. Single crochet

d. Half-double crochet

e. Double crochet 

f. Picot 

**You can go this site if you need help with any of the stitches listed: 

Annie's Catalog

Materials:

You can use any yarn you have along with any matching size hook. In other words, if you have thin yarn, use a size c or so, whereas if you have regular red heart yarn, use an H or I hook, etc. Feel free to use the suggested hook size that was printed on the label of your yarn.

Here we go...

Making the Foundation: 

Make a chain-4, then slip stitch the two ends together to form a loop. If you have a tendency to make tight chains, feel free to make a chain-5 instead (either is fine).

Row 1: 

Make a chain-1. Then, make 7 single-crochet stitches ... All into the center of the loop you created for your foundation. Now make a chain-3, and turn your work.

Row 2:

(This entire row will be worked in double-crochet)

Make a double-crochet stitch onto the first stitch below ( see the pic if youre not sure where this is) , then make 2 double-crochet stitches into each of the remaining six stitches below. When you reach the end, you must have a total of 14 stitches (the chain-3 counts as a stitch). Afterward, make a chain-1 and turn your work.

Row 3:

Onto the 2nd stitch below, make a single-crochet, a picot *, and another single-crochet... All onto the same stitch below. Now make a slip stitch onto the next stitch below. This creates the 1st of 5 peaks.

*The picot is formed by making a chain-3 and then forming a single-crochet onto the top of the same stitch that the chain-3 was formed on. 

Now, all onto the next stitch below, make a single-crochet, a half-double-crochet, a double-crochet, and a picot. Onto the following stitch, make a double-crochet, a half-double-crochet, and a single-crochet. Then, onto the next stitch you will make a slip stitch.[[ Now, repeat the instructions in this paragraph two more times. When you're done will have one tiny peak, and three larger peaks]].

Lastly we form the fifth peak by making the following all into the next stitch: a single-crochet, a picot, and a single-crochet. You will close up the last edge by slip stitching along the chain-3, down toward the foundation loop. I usually form one last slip stitch into the center of the foundation, and then make a chain-8 for the stem.

Official Pattern:

Begin: ch 4. Sl st to join.

R1: ch 1. Sc 7. Turn.

R2: ch 3. Dc in same. Dc 2 nxt 6 st - tot 14 st.

R3: ch 1. In nxt, sc 1, picot, sc 1. Sl st in nxt. **In nxt, sc 1, hdc 1, dc 1, picot. In nxt, dc 1, hdc 1, sc 1. Sl st in nxt. Rep from ** 2 more times. In nxt, sc 1, picot, sc 1. Sl st 5 down to foundation. Ch 8. Tie off. Weave in ends.

Here's a garland I made with all my little leaves. I gifted it to one of my lovely co-workers at the College. 

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I hope you all enjoy these. They were very easy, and very fun to make. 

Raspberry Crochet Shawl / Wrap

The last couple of years I've been working on lace-work more than anything, so this little wrap was a way for me to get away from the complicated lace patterns and to make something a little more down to earth.

This project was also way faster, which made it that much more fun. Some of the lace blouses and cover-ups I make can take weeks, but this wrap only took me a few evenings in my spare time. 

Here's the pattern I used for the main body of the wrap:

As you can see, it isn't a terribly complicated pattern. It's just shell stitches seperated by a dc stitch. I actually really like to use this pattern for all sorts of scarves (and I'm helping a friend make a cardigan in this basic pattern).

 In this project, I started with a five-shell pattern, just like in the diagram. Then I added rows until the piece was long enough to wrap around me comfortably. At this point I had a long reactangle, kind of like a scarf.

After that, I made a lacy border across one of the long sides...

This is the pattern I made for the edging. I kind of made it up as I went but it turned out pretty nice. [Note: The number of rows I used for the main body needed to be in quantities of 4 plus 1- this allowed this edging to line up nicely]

This is the pattern I used. Sorry if it looks messy; I like to draw my diagrams by hand.

After that, I could have just tied off and woven in the ends before moving on to the top long edge, but I decided to instead work up the side in a row of sc.

This made it so that I could move up to the top edge without cutting the yarn so many times. 

After that, I worked three rows of double-crochet on the top edge. (Note: I didn't count these stitches. I just made sure they bunched up a little on purpose. I hate counting - blech )

Okay, so this diagram is definitely messy, but I'm sure you get the gist of what I mean. Finally, I worked along the remaining short edge in sc stitches to match the other short edge. 

Last, but not least I wove in all my ends. Please please always weave in your ends. I'm not very nit picky about much in crochet, but I do believe strongly in the power of weaving-in-the-ends. Seriously, weave in the ends, or else.

I hope you like this little wrap. I found it to be very cozy - perfect for autumn. I'm probably going to make several more for friends and family before the season is over. 

If you would like any clarification, feel free to leave a comment. I love crochet talk! Dont forget to visit often to check out my endless crochet projects ;)