I love making useful things out of crochet. I often think there is always a crochet solution to anything I need. Cases, purses and bags are my favorites because they are functional but can be as pretty, complicated, simple, or unique as I want them to be. This Handy Basket looks very functional and easy but still very pleasing in its simplicity.
I am not affiliated with any websites nor do I make any money from these sites. They are simply patterns I like or would like to try myself.
The sweater is done and ready for its debut…in the Winter. I would say Fall but our Autumns are still warm. Now I can finally say I made the sweater I’ve been wanting to make for years. It’s my first attempt so I’m not surprised it could have been better.
Shows the sweater with the edging.
During summertime, I lose all track of time. I often don’t know what day of the week it is. So once again, my Freebie Friday is going out on a Saturday. But hopefully everyone else has lost all track of time too and won’t notice. 🙂
I’ve always admired pretty crochet bathing suits and told myself that I would make one one day. I’m curious as to whether it would hold up to real use. Many of them are made of cotton yarn and most say they aren’t actually made to be used in the water. I guess there is a nylon stretchy yarn that can be substituted to make it water friendly. Also, most of the bathing suits I find are skimpy bikinis and I don’t have the body to where a skimpy bikini so I’ve been looking for something with a little more coverage. Here is one (below) I found that I might actually wear.
Front View
I hadn’t planned on finishing the crochet sweater any time soon. I was going to take my time sewing the squares, finishing the edging, and possibly plugging the holes. But…I couldn’t help myself! I started sewing and couldn’t stop. Then I had the bright idea that the sleeves had to be longer so I made more squares. Then I knew the sweater had to be longer so I made some more squares. Then I sewed and sewed. I un-sewed a few times when I noticed some mistakes I couldn’t live with. Then I sewed some more. Did I ever mention I can become obsessive about my crochet? When I had the hood, the body and one sleeve put together, I tried it on. Eck! The sleeves were too long! Luckily, I hadn’t woven in the ends to all the squares so most were easily taken off but there was one, one that I did weave in and accidentally cut the corner of the square. I was able to save it rather than replace it since it was a square that had already been solidly added to the sweater. I also saw that I didn’t really need to add more squares to the length of the thing but it didn’t hurt either so I just left it. Continue reading
I am not affiliated with any websites nor do I make any money from these sites. They are simply patterns I like or would like to try myself.
Got to spend the weekend near the beach and had a little down time while the hubby and kiddo were sleeping. I couldn’t sleep in the hotel bed and by 6:00 a.m. I had to get out of bed. I went for a long walk along the beach and took some photos. It was fun seeing the beach community come to life. It was overcast and chilly and so empty. I knew in a few hours it wouldn’t be that way.
I guess not everyone gets up at 6 in the morning!
Momma’s little helpers 🙂 Doesn’t seem like a lot of squares when they are nice and neat like this. 🙂
I have finished crocheting the 74 granny squares needed to make my sweater. It is now time to put all those squares together into something that will hopefully look like a sweater. I admit I am a little intimidated by all those squares staring at me. I diligently wove in all the loose ends to each and every square and now the assembly must begin. I have gathered my posse who seems more eager to get started than me. Just look at all those happy faces. Continue reading
I can’t express how proud I am of my students who have taken their crochet skills to the next level. So much so, I thought I would showcase and highlight some of their projects. Some of them have started following my blog and I want to show them how much I love their work by displaying it here.
Three of my 3rd grade girls have been really challenging themselves lately. They have been working on self guided projects that I have been very impressed with and that they are very proud of.
This student (below) was working on a headband when she realized that it wasn’t working out. One of the things I’m always stressing is that crochet is flexible and if something doesn’t work out, there is almost always a way to fix it, perhaps by turning it into something else. She was working rows of single crochet, changing colors to create stripes. When she saw that she hadn’t made the rows long enough for a headband, she turned it into a cute Barbie purse.
A+ for creativity and flexibility 🙂
yochet 