Doctor Who baby afghan

More progress on the Doctor Who baby afghan.

This is about 14 1/2" done, which is a bit more than a third of the way. I've worked 18 stripes out of 44. In my version there are 195 rows total in those 44 stripes. I've worked 76 of those.

I'm working with Deramores Stylecraft Special DK (from the UK) and a G hook. The foundation chain is 151.

This yarn is wonderful to work with. It's quite soft and I can't recall having to cut out any bad spots thus far which means no extra tails to sew in. There will be quite enough of those!

I make no claims that this is an accurate representation of the original scarf in any manner since this is to be a baby afghan. To follow a scarf pattern would be many feet long and way too long for a baby or toddler afghan. We'll see how long this one ends up being. I see at least one more in my future as I fiddle with the numbers to get it as I want it.

There ARE 44 stripes as in the original and they are in the same colors as the original scarf, but the stripes are naturally of different number of rows to get the same effect in a smaller package. This is a personal decision. You may want to do yours differently. In my previous one piece baby afghan I had to change things up as it was getting too long. This one is more "accurate" let us say as a percentage of the original numbers. Truthfully, only mega fans will care if you use the same percentages. If you have the general color scheme it will be recognized as a Who production.

As noted in many other posts, the original Doctor Who scarves were knitted and I am crocheting so if you want absolutely accuracy well, you wouldn't be making a baby blanket firstly as there wasn't one in the original. LOL But for the scarves true to life would be knitted. 

I'm quite happy with my crocheted projects but I do love my scarf knitted for me by my daughter. She also made me a blue Who inspired filet scarf . It goes well with most of my outfits so I wear that one quite often when weather permits. We don't have that many cold days in Louisiana so I'm always trying to decide which to wear. Right now we're talking degrees in the 90s so no scarves!

Happy crocheting!
Sandie

Doctor Who baby afghan

I have begun my third Doctor Who baby afghan made with colors of the Doctor Who 4th Doctor scarf.

For this one I'm using the same yarn (as listed below), but a different chain (151) and different numbers for the individual stripes of color. 

The yarn I am using is 
Burgundy - Stylecraft Special DK Burgundy
Camel -  Stylecraft Special DK Camel
Sunshine - Stylecraft Special DK Sunshine (a bit too orange)
Rust - Stylecraft Special DK Copper
Grey - Stylecraft Special DK Graphite
Greenish Brown - Stylecraft Special DK Khaki
Bronze - Knit Picks sport Sienna (too dark, not enough red)

I've worked about 7 1/2" so far with a G hook.

I'm also working on a second daisy square. My first one went off to Krystal this morning.

Happy crocheting!
Sandie

daisy square

I am all kinds of pleased to post a picture of my latest project. A little background... Some time ago - I want to say years but I don't know really, suffice to say it's been a while - I saw this cute daisy square at Krochet Krystal's blog and decided to try it. At that time, the deal was that one square had to be sent to her for her charity work which was not a problem for me. I love participating in worthwhile charity efforts. 

I got the pattern and got so frustrated with it that I gave up. I'm sure it wasn't the pattern as a lot of people had already completed it successfully. It just wasn't the time for me to "get" it then. She is now on version 9. As I do myself, she occasionally updates and revises. This is common to designers and to her credit. As I remember it, at that time if you did not send a square to her the rules were you had to get rid of the pattern - delete it, tear it up or whatever. I did all that and that was the end of it. 

However, that square stuck in my mind - the one that got away LOL - and I happened across it again. Now there is a yahoogroup you join and the pattern is sent to you as a pdf file along with a link to a password protected video series demonstrating how to do it. I decided I would join the group and give this sucker another try. Read *not be so wimpy and give up*.

I am VERY happy to report that I have completed a square, correctly, in the required size (8").

Is that not the most beautiful square in the world?? :-) The last picture is the back of the square.

Yesterday, when I began working I got to round 5 and one particular part didn't look right to me. I decided to sleep on it and start fresh today. That did the trick. I had no problem with it today. 

Yesterday I followed along with the videos but today, having done it once, I followed the written instructions. The videos were made using a previous version so the final rounds are not exactly the same as the printed copy. I also used an I hook to get to the required size rather than the H hook listed.

Once you've worked the square successfully, you see how simple it really is. 

The most important thing in working this square is to remember to keep your stitches and ball of yarn to the front. If you don't do this, you will have to rip it back.

The second most important thing is to work the rounds in the order they appear on the pattern. That might be a duh moment, but really the temptation is to work 5A, then 5B, but really you work 5A then 6A is worked before 5B. That is important or you will end up with the confusion I had yesterday. She does say this. I am just thick.

Each round is gone over twice, once with the petal color and once with the background color. (If you are sending a square to Krystal, the background color needs to be white or black.) The A rounds are petals and the B rounds are backgrounds. I used four colors, navy in the center, turquoise for the petals,  white for the background, and a darker turquoise or aqua or something for the final round. It might be teal. Not sure on that one.

If you watch the videos, note that one is done twice - I think it is 4a. Don't watch the first one, watch the one that says "closeup". The first one has a mistake where she rips back - I was following along so I had to rip back also. LOL Not a happy camper, but on the other hand it did give me more practice on the square. :-)

There is a blog with a FAQ answering some questions about the square and of course you can use the help file and query the group if you have other questions not answered there.

On the pattern itself are Krystal's rules for pattern use. 

This pattern is not to be sold. You can sell items made with the daisy pattern, but only for the purpose of charity. This means at fundraising fairs, donated to raffles, etc. If you sell outright on your own, please specify what charity the money will go towards. You may NOT sell the pattern. You may donate items made with the pattern (in fact, I encourage this!).

If you are not interested in following her rules, then don't join the group. I believe in respecting the wishes of the designer.

This is a wonderful project to get rid of those leftover balls. It takes very little of each color to make an 8" square. It is a tricky square, but once you've done it, the next ones will be a breeze.

Happy crocheting!
Sandie

another scarf

Another dc scarf done. This one looks like it's the same as the other one, but it is a different color. It's the camera. :-) This one is worked with an H hook, ch 22, straight dc, in I Love This Yarn turquoise.

Finished size is 6" x 62".

I've also been making some yo-yos but I've shown those before so I won't bore you with pictures of dozens of yo-yos. heh

I've gotten my leftover yarn balls down to one large Hobby Lobby bag. I may have a few bits in the closet still but not much. The thing is with every thing I make there is a leftover ball! LOL I use them and I add to them.

I was thinking of making one of those LEGO afghans for Jonah. I also have a second Doctor Who babyghan in my sights. I've worked up a reduced version of my own and will follow that rather than the WLK one. I continue to work on reducing my stash and will be making more scarves, squares, yo-yos and such. Always something to make. :-)

Happy crocheting!
Sandie

Knitting and Crocheting for Good

I decided to work on a scarf this time. I have several single skeins and I've been trying to use my stash to complete projects both because of space and finances. We have a good many costly home improvement/repair projects that need to be completed this year.

There is a newly organized group of ladies in New Jersey who are trying to make a difference in their community. The group is called Knitting for Good and they are working in association with three different churches in the area though they are happy to receive outside donations. The items they make and receive are given to the homeless, animal shelters, womens shelters, AIDS babies and preemies.  They can use items like sweaters and booties in all colors and sizes for infant to 1 year in addition to scarves, hats, squares and afghans.

You can find the Facebook page for the group here.

All items should use closed patterns as they are for warmth. They accept both knitted and crocheted items. If you do live in the area, you can drop by their group meetings and have some fellowship with like minded crafters. There will be someone there who can teach you as well as accept your completed projects.

Here is some information I was sent regarding their needs if you are in the area or would just like to help them get started.

Squares: any size.  6" squares would assemble well to make a scarf.

Blanket sizes for animal shelters: 14” x 14” for cats and small animals; 24” x 24” for cats and small to medium dogs; 36” x 36” for medium to large dogs. These are donated through the Snuggles Project and follow those guides. Shelter projects can use any yarn that is washable and in any colors with a closed pattern so claws don't get caught.  They also suggest double knotting yarn that is joined or tied off because of the continuous washing.

For hats, scarves, mittens, and socks any type yarn is acceptable and patterns don't matter as long as they are warm.  They presently have a lot of items geared towards women and could use more items for men in black, brown, dark green or any other masculine color.

They will soon have an e-newsletter. If you would like to be added to their mailing list, holler out to them and send your e-mail to them (not to me). You can contact them through the Facebook page. Meetings are held at different locations so you need to get an address for mailings.

I am not associated with this organization but learned of it through a friend in the area who was invited to join them. I have sent a couple things to them and the scarf pictured above will also be going to them

Finished size of the scarf is about 6" x 62". I wasn't given a size for scarves but assume any would size would work since they cater to men, women, and children.

In other news, I saw this item posted on Facebook and thought it was such a fabulous idea I wanted to share it here as well. It is a bin that has opening on the side and is clear so you can not only see what's in that bottom bin but get to it easily as well. I need several of these!

Also, I often see requests for pattern for circle to square motifs. Sarah London featured this one called Pop Wheel on her blog. Remember that her patterns are written in UK terms so her tr is U.S. double. Her dtr is my triple. This would not be a good pattern for the charity above, but would work for many projects.

I also wanted to mention this web site that converts your picture to a graph that can be used for various projects. It is called Knit Pro

That's all for now. Have a great crocheting week.

Happy crocheting!
Sandie