Orange Crochet Openwork Handwarmers

My husband thinks I'm obsessed because I've made a lot of handwarmers/fingerless gloves this winter. I have made a few for friends and family, and a few for myself. They are just so "handy" and I love wearing them while at the computer. My hands DO stay warmer than his while we are in the home office, so much so that he even reduced himself to trying on one of my pairs. ha! Now he gets it. So, when my sister recently taught me how to crochet in rounds (some things like this are just better learned in person), I decided to try a pattern for a pair of handwarmers worked in rounds. They worked up quickly and easily. I love the way they turned out, and wearing them right now I can attest to their power to keep my hands warm. yay! I might have to make a few more of this pattern....ok maybe I'm a wee bit obsessed. If you are looking for a great handwarmer pattern, here is the one I used this time: http://creativeyarn.blogspot.com/2008/02/crochet-openwork-handwarmers.html

School Colors Scarf

Happy Birthday, Mom! This scarf is one I made for Mom using the school colors of the high school at which she teaches. She teaches English, so I tried to be careful with my prepositions. Anyway, it was so much fun, I'm going to make one with my son's school colors next! Here's the pattern: http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/80829AD.html

Crocheted Fingerless Gloves

I decided to try this pattern for fingerless gloves, or wrist warmers:

http://tinyurl.com/yh82jmf

I think they turned out very pretty! The only problem I encountered is that somehow I ended up with one longer than the other. I haven't quite worked out the whole issue of gauge yet. I don't really understand completely how to check your gauge, so I wing it. And end up with different length gloves. But, still lovely and very wearable in my opinion. Maybe I'll make a matching hat and work on learning to crochet in rounds (eek!).

The finished blanket

My first big crochet project...finally completed! Here's the original blog post when I first began: http://soaprehab.blogspot.com/2010/02/crochet-project-2-blanket.html So, that took a lot longer than I had imagined, but I'm very happy with the finished product. It has a nice, soft feel and drape and is lighter than I thought, which makes it a perfect year round blanket. I think I'll work on a few smaller crochet pieces next, though, before I go launching into another big item like another blanket. It's very satisfying to use something you've made, yourself, don't you agree?

Scrubby Soap Saver

For my next crochet project, I had a lot of fun making a scrubby soap holder/saver contraption. I found some vibrant cotton yarn and a couple of patterns and modified them. For the basic holder structure, I used this pattern: http://dragonfaeriee.blogspot.com/2009/03/soap-pockets.html
But then, for a twist of sorts, I used this pattern of alternating short and tall stitches to make scrubby nubs on my soap saver: http://crochetme.com/media/p/95270.aspx And the final product works beautifully! Saves my soap scraps, washes me up really well, and looks pretty, too. Useful, eco-friendly, and didn't take weeks to complete!

Crocheted Blanket Project-Phase 2

Half a blanket! Very exciting! It's coming along well, and I think I've got the hang of these pretty shell and V stitches. It's going to look so good on the bed. I like how it drapes and is cozy but not too heavy. I also learned how to change yarn when my skein runs out. woot! That feels like such a huge accomplishment. Now I'll be able to change colors for my next project, if I so choose. I'm already thinking ahead to all the things I want to make next. I warned my husband that our house is going to turn into Crochet Land. I'm thinking soapy related things next like washcloths, soap saver bags, and dish towels. Fun! Here's a photo of it draped over the white chair for contrast:

Crochet Project #2- The Blanket

I now find myself hopelessly addicted to crochet. I can work on it a little here and there, when I have a minute or when I have an hour to unwind. It's therapeutic for my fidgety hands, although I do have to keep an eye on the carpal tunnel in my right wrist. As long as I crochet in shorter bursts and do my wrist stretches, I don't have serious issues with it. For my next project, I started a blanket for my bed. Our bedroom walls are painted a slate blue, and our comforter is gray with black trim. So, my blanket I'm making solid black. I am using this pattern: http://home.att.net/~susanbinkc/patterns.html?avshell2.html but mine is turning out looser and has larger wholes, which I think will look good over the light gray comforter. Here's a photo of what I have so far...right now it looks like it would be a pretty scarf!

First Crochet Scarf Phase Two

Phase Two: Where I almost pull the entire thing out and start over. Then come to my senses in the nick of time. I learned something else new about crochet, and that is "tension". I was apparently very inconsistent with the tension of my yarn as I stitch and my edges are a little on the wavy side. You can see in this top photo the interesting little in and out pattern going on as my single crochets were looser then tighter. I asked my son to look at it, and he didn't even notice the edges. He mentioned the inconsistent "wholes". Which, I'm thinking is also the tension issue. I don't care so much about the wholes...with this textured yarn I don't think that's going to be so noticeable as I wear it. To normal people. And since he said he didn't even notice the uneven edges, it's staying as is. As you can see in the other photo, I finally got into my groove holding the yarn and developed a consistent tension toward the end of what I have finished so far. I'm loving this color, and the softness of the yarn, so I hope it ends up wearable. :)

My first crochet project

One a whim last week, I decided I wanted to learn to crochet. My sister is a happy crocheter, having learned from our grandmother, but for whatever reason I just never picked it up. So, I stood at JoAnn and stared at lots and lots of yarn. I knew I wanted dark blue and super soft, but I had no idea how many different types of yarn would be there for my eyes to feast upon. Finally I chose one, and picked out the size crochet hook recommended on the yarn label. When I got home, I started watching every youtube tutorial I could find, every written instruction, a few patterns I didn't understand, and found lots of information. I settled on a "one skein scarf" pattern that consists of just single crochet stitches. Sounded like a good first project. Well, I started my chain row, pulled it out a few dozen times, then moved onto my single crochet row and pulled it out a few times. ugh. I couldn't see what I was stitching and I didn't know what I was doing. Turns out the yarn I chose is very fuzzy, textured, and not a good newbie yarn. Oops. I kept plugging along, though, and got 4 rows completed. My edges were sadly uneven, and the whole thing looked uneven and pretty rough. But I learned a few things, somehow refrained from throwing both yarn and hook, pulled the whole thing out and started again. I realized I wasn't always crocheting into the very last stitch and that's why my edges were uneven. Now this time, it's starting to look a little bit more like it should. So, here I have what I'm calling phase one: