Little Crochet and Knits

by Kelly

So, we're planning a garage sale, now that we know when we're moving out. And I thought this would be a good time to sell all these little things I've made.

butterfly bookmarks

 

teeny sweater

flowers...lots of flowers

While gathering items for the sale, I was surprised by how many hand made items I had accumulated in the two years that I have been knitting and crocheting. 

Not quite as surprised by the four bags of books, though. No, I'm not selling the library. The library is 1,000 books and counting - getting rid of four bags of books hardly makes a dent. I blame my mom. She's the one who started my addiction.

I've been packing the library away in cardboard boxes and it makes me sad. Even though this is a temporary parting, I think I am going to miss them more than a normal person should. A year or so without my books really shouldn't bring a tear to my eye. But I am consoled by the fact that my husband feels the same way about his movie collection.

Crochet and Knitted Hats

by Kelly

Now that the first chill of fall has arrived, my thoughts have gone back to knitting. Last year, Donna, Dawn and I knit hats, mittens, and scarves to donate to a kid's Christmas giveaway. So, I've done some searching for free patterns, and found some amazing things. And quite a few freebies!


Crystal Palace Yarns is coming out with something new - wide ribbon yarn that ruffles itself. Some of the free patterns are adorable. Look at this hat!






Free knitting pattern here. The ribbon yarn is a little different, so there's also a tutorial here on how to knit with it.

And then there's a cute Rainbow hat

Free knitting pattern here  This is an adult sized pattern, so you'd have to juggle it a bit for a kid's size. But there are matching mittens,  and they come in child, women, or men's sizes. Although, I don't know any guys who would wear rainbow stripe mittens. Just saying.

And seen on Make, this amazing hat.  Read the article here, and learn about early motion pictures and Eadward Muybridge. Or just go to Ravelry and check out the pattern.

Knitting pattern on Ravelry. This one costs $5.00.

But enough knitting patterns. Although I have not given up hope of convincing others (hint, hint) to learn how to knit, crochet patterns are something we can all use. So here's a sampling.

Free from the Fabled Needle

 

Available from Etsy here.Pattern costs $5.00

From nothing's creative anymore

And you know what would go perfectly with that last hat? A scarf made of fun fur that looks like a fox's tail. Cute!

Crochet Bags - Yarn Alternatives

by Kelly

The first bag I crocheted was made with two strands of yarn. It turned out okay, but I was disappointed by how stretchy it was. Of course, I could have made a lining for it, but that involves sewing. And since I don't have a sewing machine,  I would have to do the seams by hand. Ugh.

So I thought I would try out some alternatives to yarn. My next one was made with strips cut from an old set of sheets. I have since found out that there is a much easier way to make those fabric strips :





This is from Herrshner's and it's called a Strip-it Tool. It's about ten dollars, and a lot easier than cutting all that fabric by hand.

That bag turned out fairly well, but the edges of the fabric strips frayed, giving the finished bag a fuzzy look. One way, I guess, to prevent this is to cut the strips thicker. Mine were only about an inch and a half wide.

Then I decided to try T-shirt yarn. Polka Dot Pineapple has by far the best tutorial on how to make your own T-shirt yarn. Using her method, you end up with one continuous length of yarn, which is way better than having a bunch of loose ends to weave in, or a ton of knots in your finished product. No matter how you choose to make it, though, that part is kind of a pain. And you need four or more t-shirts to make a good sized bag, so unless all your shirts are the same color, your bag is going to have stripes.




T-shirt yarn actually makes an awesome tote bag. If you've ever seen cotton piping, which is used in upholstery, that's almost exactly what this yarn is like, except that it's lighter. It's also easy to knit or crochet with, provided you've got the right size needles or hook. I used size 10 knitting needles and a J hook.

The finished bag is sturdy, not stretchy, and  doesn't have the fuzzy look of the fabric strip bag. It's also machine washable, which is nice, although it takes a long time to dry. That's really the only problem I see - this baby soaks up water like a sponge.

The fabric bag is on the left, the T-shirt yarn bag on the right.

Next I think I'll try a beach bag, probably made with twine. Sounds weird, right? But I've seen hemp yarn, nylon cord, and jute twine used to make beach bags. I've also seen a bag made of Raffia ribbon, but I'm just not sure about that. I keep wondering what happens to Raffia when it gets wet. Does the color run? Would the bag itself dissolve? Not exactly what I'm looking for in a beach bag.

I keep wondering what all those woven straw beach bags are made out of. Anyone have a clue?