Knit Your Bit 2010 pattern unveiled

The Knit Your Bit patterns for 2010 are out! I'm very excited about this year's crochet pattern because I designed it. In the knitted pattern, Lauren used a cable. Since making cables in crochet is a little complex, I designed what I call a faux cable. It is a front post triple crossed stitch really. You can find both the knitted patterns and the crocheted pattern at http://www.nationalww2museum.org/knitting .

I have photos of my completed scarves at the Cabana here .

I also have a tutorial on the method (noted on the pattern)  in the stitches section here.

When you see the pattern you may find it familiar. I posted a photo of a cream colored scarf a few days ago. I used the faux cable portion of the seaman's scarf to make that scarf. I was testing the instructions and just kept on going. LOL

I hope you enjoy the pattern as much as I enjoyed working on it.

I also want to thank Sandy over at the Bridge and Beyond. I won her contest celebrating 200 posts. I will be sure to post a photo when I receive my prize. Thanks, Sandy!

To my surprise I also won a contest at Bev's Charity Challenge. The prize was donated by Kaye. This was the red, white, and blue yo-yo and saltines project. I posted photos of a few of those yo-yos and saltines. They are so much fun to make! Dawn is going to be kept very busy the next few weeks!

Thanks to all who participated in these contests. I know we all do what we can and work hard to help those in need. The contests are fun and encouraging and we end up doing more than we even thought we could! So kudos and thanks.

Happy crocheting!

International Crochet Day / Mom

Today is International Crochet Day. What have you been doing to celebrate? I have been crocheting in public. I'll have photos in a few days of some very unusual crocheting. LOL

Sorry to be so short, but I haven't had a chance to put together the strips I did a few days ago.

My 90yo mother has started having hallucinations - both visual and auditory. She is singing along with folks who are not there and seeing things - like pecans in the bathroom. Very odd. The hospital did not determine a cause and her tests came out okay so they sent her home. She sees her regular doc on Monday.

Happy crocheting!

International Crochet Day

Just popping in to mention the contest at Jimbo's Front Porch. Tomorrow is International Crochet Day. What are YOU going to do to celebrate this special fiber art? Go let Jimbo know.

Myself I plan to spend some time crocheting, in public if I can! I'll keep you posted on that.

Happy crocheting!

strips and squares

 I decided to make some crocheted strips to use for making scarves using the pattern Restful Rainbows (an afghan pattern). I've done this before and liked the result. You can see one of them below. Anyway, I made two strips and played around with them in the photos. :-) I was able to make 2 strips and 1 square from one skein of Vanna's Choice (3.5 ounces).

The pattern can be found in Mile-a-minute Afghans (Leisure Arts and Oxmoor House c1996).

Here are two squares I made from leftover after making four strips.  The pattern is Susan Smith's Filet Granny Square which can be found at Crochet Cabana. These squares came out 6" for me with an H hook. They are going to Share a Square. If you are making squares for this effort, remember to leave a long tail for sewing. 


That's it for today.

Happy crocheting!

dragonfly square and scarves

I'm going to try and show you the dragonfly square I made. I don't know if you can see the dragonfly in this yarn. It seems to show up better in light colored yarn. The pattern is here. It wasn't terribly difficult to do, but you do have to pay attention and count your stitches well.

Those who have visited my other blog, Crafty Corral, in the past, know about the Knit Your Bit campaign to make scarves for veterans all across the country. This is headed up by the folks at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, right in my backyard. :-) Not literally, but you get the idea. This is the 5th year of the program and it's going strong. Each year a new pattern has been offered to knitters and crocheters. The new pattern will be out very soon. Keep on the lookout. It's a good one!

Although they encourage you to use their pattern, scarves are happily accepted with any appropriate pattern - something a veteran, particularly a man as most are male, would enjoy. If in doubt, read the FAQ or e-mail Lauren.

In other news, I saw this interesting looking scarf by Coats and Clark. There is a video showing how to make this Cosmic Loopy scarf using their yarn called Cosmic Yarn, which has both thick and thin sections. You use the thin sections to make the scarf and the thick sections make the loops. Here is the video.



See? A little tricky, but only uses single crochet stitches.

I haven't tried that one, but I do have another scarf done. Here's a photo of it. I used Red Heart Soft off white yarn. Very nice yarn though I usually shy away from Red Heart. The RHSS is so rough but this one is not. It reminded me, in fact, of the bamboo yarn I used some time back. Finished size was 5 3/4" x 63 1/2". I did not border this scarf because I found I was pleased with the way it came out without it. It will be headed to Knit Your Bit.

That's all for now.


Happy crocheting!