His and Hers Scarves [crochet pattern]

As I've mentioned, part of my christmas gifting is going to include couplings of gifts, such as husband/wife and mother/daughter.  I've created this pattern for a couple of very special Iowa Hawkeye fans in my life, with differing styles.  The colors I've used are, of course, black and gold, but I've made variations.  I bought just standard worsted weight Red Heart yarn, in black and gold, and then I also purchased gold and black crochet thread.  For the woman, I paired the glittery gold thread with the black yarn, and for the man, I've paired the black thread with the gold yarn.  Note, if you choose to do something like this, make sure you've bought enough thread for the project.  At first, I only bought one of the gold thread, not realizing that it was only 100 yards (where my black thread is 300 yards) and then I had to go back and buy another ball when I was only halfway done with the scarf!  So, for your reference, it takes around 200 yards of each yarn and thread to complete one scarf.

Copyright 2010-2012 LiLu Studios: This Crafting Life, by Lori Steffens. {http://www.thiscraftinglife.com/} Make it, Wear it, Love it, but above all, Share it, don't Sell it!

His and Hers Lattice Scarves

Materials:
2 contrasting colors, 200 yds each
Size H hook

Special Stitch:
Front Post Treble Lattice stitch (FPTL):  YO twice, insert hook in front post of dc two rows below, YO, pull loop through.  YO, draw through two loops, YO, draw through two loops, YO, draw through two loops.

Pattern:

With A, Ch 21

R1: DC in fourth chain from hook.  DC across to end, ch 2 (does not count as hdc), turn. (19 dc)
R2: hdc in each st to end (19 hdc)
R3: join B, drop a, ch 3 (counts as DC), dc in next st, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc in next 5 st, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc in last two st. (19 st)
R4: ch 2 (does not count as hdc), hdc in each st to end. (19 st)
R5: ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in next 6 sts, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc, FPTL, dc in last 7 sts. (19 st)

Repeat from R2-R5 for the desired length of the scarf.  FO, weave in ends.

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Gift Bags, the solution to my wrapping conundrum [craft project]

While searching the internet last night for images and ideas for the gift tags that I want to make, I happened across a template to make your own little purse-type box out of cardstock.  Since I have more than enough 12x12 paper (enough to strangle a donkey...) I decided to try to make some of these for my mini pies.  It's the perfect solution, because I can put the pies in there straight out of the freezer and gift them without having to worry about wrapping at the last minute or trying to find boxes with lids that I can wrap.  They're not big enough for the presents to be included in them (in some cases anyways), but they'll be perfect for the pies.  The best part is how much fun they are to make and decorate.  Each thing I add to them just seems to make them prettier and more unique.

Find the directions here: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/templates-f143/mini-note-purse-template-instructions-t436236.html








My favorite scarf, and a knit vs. crochet comparison. [knit pattern and crochet pattern]

So one of the people that I'm gifting for just told me that they wanted a scarf, and told me to do whatever i felt like.  I looked through a million patterns, but just couldn't find anything that I really liked.  So I thought about myself, what I liked, and the first thing I thought about was my favorite scarf of all time.  The only problem is, that it's a knit.  I haven't knitted in about 3 years because I love crochet so much!  So, I looked at the scarf and thought about how easy it would be to translate that into a crochet pattern.  First, let me list the two patterns, because they are so simple it's not even funny!

Ribbed Scarf [knit version]

Cast on 20.  *k2, p2* repeat until end of row. turn, and repeat.  take care to knit in the stitches that you purled and purl in the stitches that you knitted.  Make as long as you want.   (I make it suuuuper long because it's nice and cozy)

Ribbed Scarf [crochet version]

Chain 22.
R1: dc in 3rd chain from hook, dc across to end.  (20 st)
R2: ch 3 (does not count as dc) *FPDC in next two dc, BPDC in next two dc* repeat to end. (20 st)
Repeat row 2 until scarf is desired length, taking care to FPDC in st where you BPDC'd before and BPDC in the st where you FPDC'd before.

See how easy they are?  They both are just a simple repetition for the length of the scarf.  They work up very quickly too!  I love using the Lion Brand Homespun yarn for these, they make it warm and very fuzzy, especially after a quick run in the washing machine and dryer!

Now here's the thing.  Even though the patterns are both for a rib, they produce very different results.  Just take a look at my pictures below:

[insert images here]

Now, nevermind that the crochet version is very short.  I wasn't doing it to make anything, just merely show how the two look in comparison.  See how the qualities are very different?  Each is nice, in it's own way, but they have very different characteristics.  I think it's something that us crafters sometimes lose sight of~ I had gotten so into crochet, that I had forgotten about the lushness of this scarf, the way that the knit stretches and feels different.  It might make me break out my knitting needles more often!  :)

Bread and Butter Pot Holder [crochet pattern]

My mother made her request for christmas months ago, and I've just now gotten the inspiration to make something for her! I found a pattern for this, but it was not exactly what I wanted, so I modified it, of course!


Bread and Butter Potholder Pattern
Copyright 2010-2012 LiLu Studios: This Crafting Life, by Lori Steffens. {http://www.thiscraftinglife.com/} Make it, Wear it, Love it, but above all, Share it, don't Sell it!
Size "H" hook

Bread
Make 2
Row 1: With white ch 22, dc in 4th ch from hook and in each ch across, ch 3, turn – 21 dc
Row 2-8: Dc in next st and each st across, ch 3, turn – 21 dc
Row 9: 2 dc in same st, 2 dc in next st, tc 7 sts, dc, hdc, dc, tc 7 sts, 2 dc in next st, 3 dc in last st, finish off – 31 sts

Butter
Row 1: With yellow ch 8, sc in second ch from hook, sc in each ch across, ch 1, turn – 2 sc
Row 2-5: Sc in next st and each st across, ch 1, turn – 7 sc
Row 6: Sc in next st and each st across finish off – 7 sc

Finishing
Sew butter to right side of front at an angle.
With wrong sides tog and working through both loops of both pieces, join front and back, at a lower corner, by working sc in each st around increasing as necessary to keep piece lying flat; make loop by crocheting to where you want it, then ch 10 off the piece, join with sl st back in same sc you left off at, and continue on until end.  FO, weave in ends.

Arrow Hat [crochet pattern]

So for quite some time now, I've been trying to find a pattern that works well for a man and a woman, that has some cool design on it, but isn't just a beanie.  So I wrote my own.  I made this hat for my husband for christmas, here's hoping he likes it!


Copyright 2010-2012 LiLu Studios: This Crafting Life, by Lori Steffens. {http://www.thiscraftinglife.com/} Make it, Wear it, Love it, but above all, Share it, don't Sell it!

Arrow Hat Pattern

Size "H" Hook

Note:  This is an Advanced pattern.  Make sure that you pay close attention to where the stitches are supposed to go in order to get the arrow pattern to come out correctly.

Throughout this pattern, I use many commas.  The commas are perhaps the most important thing.  For example, if you see FPDC, FPDC, dc, that means in the next three stitches, you are going to FPDC in the first, FPDC in the second, and dc in the third.  However, if you see something like this: "FPDC and dc and FPDC all in same dc"  make sure that you are doing all three, the FPDC, dc, and FPDC all in the same stitch from the previous row.

Instructions:

Ch3
R1: 12 dc in 1st ch, join with slst in 1st dc
R2: ch2, *2 FPDC on next dc, 1 dc* repeat around. Join with slst in top of first FPDC (18)
R3: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, 2 dc in dc* repeat around. Join with slst in top of first FPDC (24)
R4: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, 2 dc in dc* repeat around. Join with slst in top of first FPDC (30)
R5: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, 2 dc in dc* repeat around. Join with slst in top of FPDC (36)
R6: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, FPDC on same st, dc, dc* repeat around. Join with slst in top of FPDC. (42)
R7: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, FPDC, 2dc in FPDC, FPDC, dc* repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (48)
R8: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, FPDC in FPDC,  2dc in dc, dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc* repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (54)
R9: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC,  dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc, 2 FPDC in next dc, dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (60)
R10: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in top of next FPDC, FPDC around FPDC, dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc* repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R11: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc in dc, dc in FPDC, sk dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in top of same stitch, dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC on same stitch, sk dc, dc in FPDC, dc in dc* repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R12:  ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc in dc, sk dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in dc, FPDC and dc and FPDC all in same dc, dc in dc, FPDC in FPDC, sk dc, dc in dc * repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R13:  ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc in dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in dc, FPDC in FPDC, dc in dc * repeat around. Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R14-22: Repeat R11-R13
R23-R25: Repeat R13.  FO, weave in ends.

Move aside, here comes the crafting train!!!

So yesterday and the day before were both very productive days for my crafting ventures!  I'll be posting some new patterns after I get their pictures taken, but first, let me update on the crafting that has been completed!


Scarf (the knit I'm halfway done with)  Done!!!  yay!  putting those knitting needles back in the closet!Trivets (set of at least 3) Got 1 done!  :)Bath set (puff, mitt, washcloth)
pincushion
hat or scarf (for my bro-in-law... I can't decide what to make for him!)
a half of a scarf (I ran out of gold crochet thread!)  Got the thread so I can finish it!Aside from crochet projects, I also have some crafting that needs to be done:
A photo project
Tags for the gifts
the mini frozen pies
and of course, wrapping!  I figured out what do do about the wrapping, and I finished them yesterday!  look for a great tutorial to be coming hopefully later today!
I am feeling GREAT about my holiday crafting!  I'm going to work on the gift tags for a little bit this afternoon and hopefully finish another trivet or potholder.  And of course, look for some new patterns and tutorials to hopefully come today or tomorrow!

Inspiration!

So I'm almost done with all the large projects that I have to do, so I've been working on finishing and small projects today.  I made a buttered toast pot holder, which I'll post later, I finished a scarf, and I got the materials that I needed to finish another different scarf.  The buttered toast pot holder has inspired me, to create a set of pot holders that are all food related, but cute and kitchy.  Here's some ideas, produced from trolling the internet:























of course, the majority of these aren't potholders, but they're supercute ideas, right?  anybody else have any cute ideas?

my life in abbreviations

It seems, as I settle into the insanity that is holiday project-ing, my life is made up of abbreviations.  For example, I'm currently knitting a scarf.  K2, P2, K2, P2, etc.  Crocheting is no different.  sc, dc, hdc, tc, fpdc, bpdc, yo, etc.  patterns and abbreviations.  I wonder if i could catalog my day in abbreviations?  gu, mb, fb, gd, ml, wrr?  [translated: get up, make breakfast, feed baby, get dressed, make lunch, wash rinse repeat?]  but enough silliness for now.

Today, I did break out my knitting needles.  They've been in the back of my closet for, oh, about 3 years now?  Once I got back into crocheting, they took the backseat as I discovered all the magic that could be found in the variety of stitches.  So you could say I'm getting back to the basics, the small steps that got me hooked (hehe, like my pun?) on yarn.  I'm in fact, making my favorite scarf.  It's the one that I kept for myself, cherish and love.  And now, I'm making it as a christmas present.  Initially, I was just going to take the pattern (just a simple 2x2 rib) and make it into a crochet pattern (2fpdc, 2bpdc) and do it that way.  I started last night with a large hook and was happily crocheting along. I got about 10 rows into it, and realised that while it had the same sort of rib, it had a different look and feel.  It was stretchy, but not the same way.  it was soft, but had a hard quality to the rib that wasn't the same.  I got mad at it for not being the way i wanted and pulled it all out.  I stomped to my yarn closet and pulled out the knitting needles.  It took me a half an hour to cast it on and get the first row started~ I pulled the beginning apart about 20 times just trying to get it right without dropping stitches.  But once I got going, it started working up super fast.  I'm about a third of the way done with it and I've probably spent 2 hours total working on it.  Plus, using the yarn that I ripped out from the 10 rows of crochet, I got about twice the amount of length out of it.  The stretch is perfect and I'm beginning to bargain with myself about keeping this one.... for old times sake.  But I can't!  I have to give this one away, I picked this yarn specifically for this person!  I guess I'll just have to make another one for myself.  (after all the holiday crocheting is done)

I asked my husband, would you wear this scarf?  It's not very girly, is it?  (in my opinion, it looks like a mans scarf~ the simple rib and all)  he says yes, definitely.  (i think I'll call it the "stolen from a boy" scarf... lol)  He then proceeded to ask me if I'd started on his hat yet.  (sassy!  not once, in all the time we've been together has he asked me to crochet him something.  I've never made him anything, because it just seems like he isn't interested.  Then, about a week ago, he asks me if I could make him a hat and line it with fabric, to make it warmer.  I agreed~ because I thought it would be a fun challenge.)  I reported back that he had to wait until the holiday crafting was done.  he rolled his eyes.  (it will never be done!)

Yes, it will be done, because it has to be done.  If it doesn't get done, someone (including myself) will be very sad.

So here's the list of things in progress, that have to be done for holiday gifting.

Scarf (the knit I'm halfway done with)
Trivets (set of at least 3)
Bath set (puff, mitt, washcloth)
pincushion
hat or scarf (for my bro-in-law... I can't decide what to make for him!)
a half of a scarf (I ran out of gold crochet thread!)

Aside from crochet projects, I also have some crafting that needs to be done:
A photo project
Tags for the gifts
the mini frozen pies
and of course, wrapping!  (my favorite part!!!!  I love finding really pretty, tasteful wrap (not the cheesy stuff) and decorating it up with ribbons, tags, and other cute holiday goodness!  Most of the time, believe it or not, I order my wrap from one of the kids in the neighborhood for their school fundraisers.  (this year, I've chosen Landon~ the little 5 year old that just started kindergarten and whom my 3.5 year old is in love with)  I love the wraps I got from him!)  I need to get creative though, since I'm giving frozen pies, I either have to just give them out singly, or find boxes that have lids, that i can wrap, open back up and stick in the pie...  hmmm.

I have gotten a lot done, though.  I finished the d20, 1.5 scarves, and 7 hats.

off to crafting now!!! 

Super Spiral Hat: Hat #1 of the 30 day Hat Challenge

Hat #1 of the 30 Day Hat Challenge

Copyright 2010-2012 LiLu Studios: This Crafting Life, by Lori Steffens. {http://www.thiscraftinglife.com/} Make it, Wear it, Love it, but above all, Share it, don't Sell it!
 
Super Spiral hat


Hook: "I"
Red Heart Worsted Weight Yarn

Pattern:
Ch3
R1: 11 dc in first ch, sl st in first st

R2:  ch3, *FPDC, 2dc in next st* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3

R3:  ch3, *dc in top of FPDC, FPDC on FPDC, sk next dc, 2 dc in next dc* repeat around, finishing with a dc in same st as ch3, sl st in ch 3

R4: ch3,2dc in next st *dc in top of FPDC, FPDC on FPDC, sk next dc, dc, 2dc in next dc* repeat around, sl st in top of ch 3

R5: sl st in next dc, ch 3, dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, *sk next dc, dc in next 2 dc, 2dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC* repeat around,  sl st in top of ch3

R6: sl st in next dc, ch3, dc in next 2 dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, *sk next dc, dc in next 3 dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3

R7: sl st in next dc, ch3, dc in next 3 dc, 2dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, *sk next dc, dc in next 4 dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3

R8: sl st in next dc, ch3, dc in next 4 dc, 2dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, *sk next dc, dc in next 5 dc, 2dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3

R9: sl st in next dc, ch3, dc in next 5 dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, *sk next dc, dc in next 6 dc, 2 dc in next dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3

R10: sl st in next dc, ch 3, dc in next 6dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, sk next dc, *dc in next 7 dc, dc in top of FPDC, FPDC in FPDC, sk next dc* repeat around, sl st in top of ch3.

R11-R18: repeat R10

FO

Twilight Inspiration: Bella's Hat [crochet pattern]

So... I'm a huge Twi-hard... in love with all things Twilight.  Celebrating the upcoming release of Eclipse to DVD, I decided to work on something from the movie.  I would love to convert her mittens to a crochet pattern, but I just don't have that kind of focus right now.  Thus, I made her hat.  I looked at every pattern out there, and they all do it a little differently.  I decided to try and create a pattern based off of the pictures from the movie.  I think I got pretty close, even though the color isn't quite right!



Pattern

Materials:
about a half a skein of red heart yarn
size "H" hook

Pattern:

Ch3
R1: 12 dc in 1st ch, join with slst in 1st dc
R2: ch2, *2 FPDC on next dc, 1 dc* repeat around.  Join with slst in top of first FPDC (18)
R3: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, 2 dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst in top of first FPDC (24)
R4: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, 2 dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst in top of first FPDC (30)
R5: ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, 2 dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst in top of FPDC (36)
R6: (for this round, work all regular dc stitches in back loop only) ch2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, dc, 2dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst in top of FPDC. (42)
R7: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, dc, dc, 2dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (48)
R8: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, 2dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (54)
R9: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, 2dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (60)
R10: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, dc, 2dc in dc* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R11: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc 9 times* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R12: (for this round, work all regular dc stitches in back loop only)   ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc 9 times* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R13-17: ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc 9 times* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC (66)
R18: (for this round, work all regular dc stitches in back loop only)  ch 2, *FPDC, FPDC, dc 9 times* repeat around.  Join with slst on top of first FPDC.  FO, weave in ends.